In a fiery appearance on Arise News Channel’s PrimeTime show on Monday evening, former Kaduna State governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, has distanced himself from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), expressing deep regret over his role in bringing President Bola Tinubu to power.
El-Rufai spoke as a guest of the TV show in Abuja.
“I just feel like I contributed to this country’s problems by bringing the evil Tinubu into power. I should do the last lap by removing Tinubu,”
El-Rufai declared.
“Nigerians are tired of the APC. 91 per cent of citizens disapprove of it. They want alternatives. They want people who can put aside their differences.”
El-Rufai is said to be one of the promoters of the emerging coalition under the yet-to-be registered All Democratic Alliance (ADA), explaining that the group comprises individuals from various political and ideological backgrounds who are united by one goal – fixing Nigeria.
“Parties are not involved in this movement. Everybody has their group—there’s a group drawn from Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi has his group, and former Buhari ministers have their groups. I am not representing SDP—that’s how this coalition is formed.”
According to him, the coalition may eventually form a single political party if the need arises.
“But if there’s a need to form a political party, we will leave our groups and join a political party. This is why we feel encouraged by the party of the coalition. We are all like-minded. It is about fixing the country. Nobody is talking about his ambition. It is that Nigeria is ruled by urban bandits, so we want to drive them away and fix this country.”
El-Rufai also drew parallels between the current political climate and the events leading to the fall of the Goodluck Jonathan regime in 2015.
“The reason why the Jonathan coalition came up was because, first, the feeling that Jonathan was not ruling the country very well; secondly, Jonathan was not sure of competing in the 2015 election, so he had a problem within his party; third was the need for all of us from the smaller parties to come together owing to the first reason,” he explained.
In a moment of blunt self-awareness, El-Rufai cautioned Nigerians against blindly trusting his political choices.
“Don’t trust what I say. It seems like I’m not good at picking political candidates. Don’t trust what I say. Check if the person I pick will be better than the previous person.”
His remarks come at a time of increasing disillusionment among citizens over the performance of the APC-led government, with inflation, insecurity, and economic hardship dominating public discourse. The coalition, which has gained traction among several political blocs, is expected to clarify its structure and leadership in the coming weeks.
