A former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has announced his defection from the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In a statement posted to his verified Facebook Page on Monday afternoon, Mr El-Rufai said he was leaving the political platform he helped form and joining the opposition Social Democratic Party, (SDP).
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The former governor hinted in an Arise News interview on 24 February that he might leave the ruling party.
“I am still in the APC and will remain until when they have completely failed on their founding obligations,” the former governor said in response to a question about his future political plans. “I did not leave the party, the party left me. I will surely leave it and don’t rule that out provided it does not return to the founding principles.”
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As Kaduna governor, Mr El-Rufai campaigned vigorously for President Bola Tinubu’s election. He was thereafter nominated for a ministerial position, but the Senate withheld his confirmation, citing a report from the State Security Service (SSS).
Of recent, the former governor drew the battle line with the APC and has been vociferous in his criticism of the ruling party and some of its officials.
READ BELOW THE FULL STATEMENT BY MR EL-RUFAI ANNOUNCING HIS RESIGNATION FROM THE APC.
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NIGERIA UPDATE: Onwards to the future
As a founding member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), I have fond memories of working with other compatriots to negotiate the merger of political parties that created the APC. It had been my hope since 2013 that my personal values and that of the APC will continue to align up to the time I choose to retire from politics.
Developments in the last two years confirm that there is no desire on the part of those who currently control and run the APC to acknowledge, much less address, the unhealthy situation of the party.
On my part, I have raised concerns in private and, more recently, in public regarding the capricious trajectory of the party. Therefore, at this point in my political journey, I have come to the conclusion that I must seek another political platform for the pursuit of the progressive values I cherish.
Founders rightly feel attached towards institutions they helped create, but one must be pragmatic enough to admit when a divergence appears unbridgeable. I have diligently served the APC and made my contributions to its viability as a political platform, but I recognize that the party has since strayed and left me stuck in the vision of its well-meaning founding fathers and mothers.
As a loyal party man, I worked to help secure the APC’s election victories in 2015, 2019 and 2023. I was one of the many governors elected on the party’s platform in 2015 and 2019, that stood for certain democratic and progressive principles to advance nation-building. My eight-year tenure in Kaduna State was devoted to implementing progressive policies to advance human development in education and healthcare, as well as expand infrastructure, promote equality of opportunity, create jobs and attract investments. These records count for little in the current APC that has castrated its organs and treated its membership with contempt in the last two years. I find this no longer acceptable.
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Today, 10th March 2025, I have submitted a letter resigning my membership of the APC to my ward in Kaduna, effective immediately. Prior to this step, I had concluded consultations with my mentors, colleagues and loyalists across the country about the future. I have now decided to join the Social Democratic Party (SDP), and adopt it as the platform for our future political engagements and activities.
Without prejudice to this decision, as a member of the SDP, I will focus on engaging with and persuading other opposition leaders and parties to join us and congregate under a unified democratic platform to challenge the APC in all elections and bye-elections between now and 2027 by the Grace of God. I therefore call on all our supporters and other persons concerned about our country’s future to join us in the SDP in the journey towards making Nigeria flourish as a beacon of pride for Africans and the Black Race.
Thank you and God Bless the Social Democratic Party.
God Bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, CON
Abuja, Nigeria
10th March 2025
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