El-Rufai: Tinubu Has Betrayed APC Ideals, Taken Nigeria Backward

Former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai has criticised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, accusing him of abandoning the founding ideals of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and worsening Nigeria’s condition, Daily Trust reports.

In an interview with Deutsche Welle Hausa in Katsina, El-Rufai—once an ally of Tinubu and a strategist in the APC’s 2015, 2019, and 2023 campaigns—said:

“Since Tinubu became president, Nigeria has been going in reverse. Insecurity has worsened, the economy is in shambles, and tribalism is now the yardstick for appointments.”

He said the ruling party has strayed from its original focus “The APC we built was about justice, equity, competence, and national unity. What we see now is nothing but injustice, nepotism, and arrogance,” he said. “I did not leave the APC—it is the APC that left me.”

El-Rufai alleged that appointments in the Tinubu administration are based on tribal considerations and personal ties.

“Anyone who gets an appointment must either be from his tribe or someone he personally knows. Let them deny it, but Nigerians are not fools,” he said.

On his move to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), El-Rufai stated “The SDP is what the APC was supposed to be. It has now become a refuge for those seeking justice, fairness, and progress. We are strategizing day and night to rescue Nigerians from the hardship they are enduring under this administration.”

He criticised the APC leadership’s recent visit to former President Muhammadu Buhari.

“It was only after I visited Buhari and left the APC that they remembered him. Suddenly, they are now running to him, disturbing an old man in the middle of the night,” he said.

Speaking on the party’s decline, El-Rufai said he had warned key figures like Bisi Akande, Adams Oshiomhole, and Abdullahi Adamu.

“I asked them, ‘Is this what we formed the APC for?’ And they admitted that the party has changed. So I left. Even a child who goes astray is let go after repeated warnings,” he said.

He added that the party’s failure to hold meetings for two years shows a lack of internal democracy.

“If a party can’t sit down and deliberate for two whole years, what kind of democracy are we talking about?” he asked.

According to El-Rufai, Nigerians are increasingly turning to the SDP.

“People are tired. You go to any state—Kaduna, Katsina, Gombe, Borno—you see crowds trying to join the SDP. My chairman in Katsina, Bello Safana, barely gets time to rest because people keep trooping in,” he said.

He added that citizens still recall past achievements, “We know what we’ve done in the past, and the people know it too. A storm is coming, and when it hits, bad leaders will return to their villages. The SDP will take over with leadership that truly serves the people,” he said.

Reflecting on his support for Tinubu in 2023, El-Rufai said “We all knew about the Chicago issues, but we believed in what he did in Lagos and hoped he could replicate it. Sadly, we were wrong.”

He also criticised Tinubu’s actions in Rivers State, including the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara and other officials.

“Some actions are so clearly wrong that no excuse can justify them,” he said.

When asked for a comment, presidential adviser Bayo Onanuga responded,

“I need to read El-Rufai’s statement first.”

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