Rita Odafe
El-Rufai’s Support for Tinubu: A Gesture of National Interest
Nasir El-Rufai, the former governor of Kaduna State, recently expressed that his backing of President Bola Tinubu during the 2023 elections was solely for the benefit of the nation, expecting no personal gain in return.
In a discussion on Twitter, a user claimed that President Tinubu and his associates had sought El-Rufai’s endorsement before the election, praising him at that time, only to later abandon him and accuse him of not supporting the president.
“This is ironic, considering their initial need for El-Rufai’s support; now they deny his backing entirely,” the user remarked.
In response, El-Rufai affirmed that his political engagement was driven by selflessness, highlighting the complex nature of human behavior.
“Our actions were for God, our country, and our party without expecting anything back. What’s happening now is simply part of life’s experiences. We’ve moved on, but their conscience remains troubled. Thank you, anyway,” he replied.
El-Rufai was a key figure among Northern governors within the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) who advocated for a Southern successor to President Muhammadu Buhari. Ultimately, Tinubu became the party’s candidate and won the election against Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP).
Recently, El-Rufai has been critical of both the Tinubu administration and the APC, leading to a series of public disagreements between him and some of the President’s aides on social media.
