A former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, has asserted that President Bola Tinubu’s administration represents a greater threat to democratic governance than any previous military regime in Nigeria.
While hosting former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar at his residence over the weekend, El-Rufai condemned the Tinubu administration, labeling it “a disgrace to the very principles of democracy.”
Atiku Abubakar paid a solidarity visit to former Governor El-Rufai following an attack that occurred during the inauguration of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Kaduna State.
Recall that thugs stormed the venue of the inauguration and disrupted the proceedings.
El-Rufai and the Kaduna State government accused each other of being behind the attack.
The police later summoned El-Rufai and several African Democratic Congress (ADC) chieftains for questioning over the disruption at the party’s inauguration event.
During a solidarity visit from Atiku, El-Rufai alleged that the Tinubu administration is veering toward authoritarianism, comparing the president to Cameroon’s Paul Biya, who has remained in power since 1982.
He also accused the current government of centralizing authority at the expense of federal principles, warning that such a trend threatens Nigeria’s democratic foundation.
“Honestly sir, to me, it is even a disgrace. I mean, for people to behave the way they are behaving, it means that all the years of saying that we are for democracy and NADECO, all the claims that we are fighting for true federalism and so on—it was all a pretense, all fake again. Because this government (Tinubu’s administration) is trying to centralize everything instead of devolving power to the lower levels.”
“The sum total of this is that we are facing an evil of such a large proportion in the history of this country that if we don’t come together and end this Tinubu administration by 2027, Tinubu will try to be our Paul Biya. All the signs are there, this is how Paul Biya started,” El-Rufai said.
The former Kaduna governor added, “You (Atiku Abubakar) are our leader, you have done this fight before, you have fought the military, you have experience in democratic governance. And when you and Obasanjo were in charge of this country, no one was being harassed because he had a different political feel, never, not once. Even President Buhari, with his military background, never did that, and here we are facing full-fledged civilians but they are worse than any military regime we’ve ever had.
“Your call that we must unite is a timely one. I think the people of Nigeria have made up their mind that APC must be voted out. Nigerians are looking forward to his (Tinubu’s) ouster. We must provide the leadership and the unity of purpose that we have talked about, and then I am sure with your leadership, forbearance and diplomatic skills of bringing people together, I am sure we will reach the Promised Land.”
Responding to El-Rufai’s remarks, Atiku Abubakar praised his courage and called on opposition figures to remain steadfast and work collectively toward removing President Tinubu through democratic means in 2027.