Northern group faults El-Rufai on tenure extension claim, demands apology

An organisation, Northern Nigeria Minorities Group (NNMG), has faulted a former governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, for claiming that President Bola Tinubu is planning to extend his tenure beyond his constitutional limit of eight years.

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Mr El-Rufai had recently, alleged that President Tinubu was showing signs of wanting to become a “life president.”

He made the comment when former Vice President Atiku Abubakar paid him a solidarity visit following an attack on some African Democratic Congress (ADC) leaders, including himself, during a meeting in Kaduna.

President Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, and he is currently in his first term of four years.

The Nigerian Constitution allows a president to spend two terms in office.

in a statement shared with PREMIUM TIMES on Tuesday, the NNMG asked Mr El-Rufai to retract his comment and apologise for allegedly attempting to poison the nation’s political space.

“We therefore declare as follows; That Nasir El-Rufai should retract his lies and tender an apology to Nigerians for deliberately trying to poison the political atmosphere,” the statement signed by the group’s Convener, Jacob Edi, said.

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The group urged Nigetians to treat the former governor’s “words with contempt, recognising them as nothing more than the wailings of a rejected politician.”

This is not the first time Mr El-Rufai would criticise the President Tinubu.

Since falling out with President Tinubu after the 2023 general elections, reportedly for not being given a role in the administration despite supporting his campaign, the former governor has become one of the president’s fiercest critics.

Although he was nominated as a minister by the president, Mr El-Rufai’s nomination was rejected by the Senate, which cited security reasons.

Following the fallout, the former Kaduna governor left the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) for the Social Democratic Party (SDP) before loining the ADC, which has positioned itself as the coalition party to challenge President Tinubu in the 2027 election.

Mr El-Rufai, now a prominent leader of the ADC, has vowed to do everything possible to ensure President Tinubu is defeated in the election.

Read the full statement

Press Statement by the Northern Nigeria Minorities Group (NNMG) Abuja

NORTHERN MINORITIES TO ELFUFAI: SHUT UP.

The Northern Nigeria Minorities Group (NNMG) condemns in the strongest possible terms the reckless allegation by former Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, suggesting that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu intends to extend his tenure beyond the constitutionally guaranteed eight years.

It is our well considered view that the former governor, now effectively one of Nigeria’s content creators, is talking simply out of malice, pure bitterness, recklessness, frustration and an affront to democracy.

A critical analysis of the former governor’s political trajectory shows a character trait of a man at war with himself.

El-Rufai’s Real Problem is Bitterness, Not Principle – We ask a simple question: if El-Rufai had been appointed into President Tinubu’s ministerial team, would he still be making these wild allegations? Everyone knows the answer. His rant is nothing more than sour grapes from a man who feels sidelined and irrelevant.

A Pattern of Treachery – From his days in government to his endless political scheming, El-Rufai has shown himself as a man addicted to betrayal and blackmail. He thrives on heating up the polity with lies when his personal ambitions are not served.

Constitution Cannot Be Blackmailed – Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution is crystal clear on the tenure of a President. No amount of El-Rufai’s propaganda can alter that reality. His attempt to drag the country into a needless fear-mongering is both treacherous and dangerous.

Enemy of Stability – At a time when Nigeria needs unity, focus, and healing, El-Rufai has once again positioned himself as a destabilizing agent. His words are not those of a statesman but of a bitter man desperate to remain in the headlines.

We therefore declare as follows;

1. That Nasir El-Rufai should retract his lies and tender an apology to Nigerians for deliberately trying to poison the political atmosphere.

2. That, Nigerians must treat his words with contempt, recognizing them as nothing more than the wailings of a rejected politician.

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3. That, Security agencies should place individuals like El-Rufai under strict watch, as their reckless statements are capable of sparking unnecessary tension.

The minorities of Northern Nigeria will resist any attempt, whether by tenure elongation or by bitter politicians sowing confusion, to derail our democracy.

Nigeria’s future is too important to be held hostage by one man’s bitterness or a conspiracy of political elite group of profiteers.

Chief Jacob Edi
Kakaki Bassa-Nge
Convener
Northern Nigeria Minorities Group