Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has revealed that former President Muhammadu Buhari endorsed his decision to leave the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the Social Democratic Party (SDP) due to the way President Bola Tinubu treated him.
In an interview with BBC Hausa, El-Rufai stated that he sought Buhari’s blessings before making his move.
“I met with him (Buhari) on Friday and informed him about my consultations and preparations to leave the APC. I sought his blessings and prayers regarding the new party I was joining, and he gave me his approval, prayers, and wished me success,” El-Rufai said.
Dismissing speculations that he left out of bitterness for not being appointed a minister, El-Rufai insisted he never lobbied for a position. Instead, he claimed Tinubu personally urged him to join the administration.
“Tinubu publicly begged me in Kaduna to work with him,” he recalled. “Even then, I only agreed after we discussed privately. He told me that power supply was a major issue hindering Nigeria’s development and that he wanted to be the president who finally solved it.”
According to El-Rufai, he accepted the offer to work with Tinubu based on this promise but was ultimately disappointed.
“I don’t regret supporting his presidential ambition, but I am disappointed,” he said.
