By Ismaeel Uthman
Few political relationships in the Fourth Republic have shifted as dramatically as that between former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, and President Bola Tinubu. From pointed public criticism and ideological distance to strategic alliance and eventual rupture, ISMAEEL UTHMAN writes on the trajectory of their engagement before, during and after the 2023 presidential election.
For years, former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, stood on the opposite side of President Bola Tinubu within the power structure of the All Progressives Congress. His remarks were direct and his disagreements were open.
El-Rufai was a vocal critic of Tinubu long before the latter became the President. He never concealed his reservations about the former Lagos governor, frequently taking swipes at his personality, politics and governance style.
The former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory had, at different points, positioned himself against Tinubu’s political dominance in Lagos and within the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the national level. His closeness to the late President Muhammadu Buhari further strengthened his political standing within the party and, by extension, his capacity to counter Tinubu’s influence.
On May 4, 2019, El-Rufai urged Lagos stakeholders to confront godfatherism, a comment widely interpreted as targeting Tinubu, who was long regarded as the APC’s political leader in the state.
Speaking at an event organised by the Bridge Club titled, An evening with His Excellency Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, Governor of Kaduna State in Ikoyi, Lagos, he said, “Godfatherism? This is Lagos. Let me tell you something sir; you know, Kaduna State used to be like that. But we chose a different path and the long and short of it now is that after this election in 2019, we have retired all of them; we had to I assure you if you do that for the next four years, connecting with the people; the tin godfather, you will retire him or her permanently.”
A year later, he restated his distance from Tinubu during a webinar marking the 63rd birthday of the then Minister of Interior and former Osun State governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, on May 25, 2020.
He said, “I want to congratulate my brother, Ogbeni (Aregbesola), on his birthday. You know I’m your man any day. I’m not Asiwaju’s man and you are Asiwaju’s man, but I am your man any day. Asiwaju and I have differences but you and I have no differences.”
These positions appeared consistent with his posture during the build-up to the APC’s 2022 presidential primary. Although El-Rufai supported the agitation for the party’s ticket to shift to the South, he reportedly did not initially align with Tinubu’s aspiration.
According to APC leaders involved in the primary process, the then Kaduna governor coordinated with some northern colleagues in backing Vice President Yemi Osinbajo. However, the dynamics shifted.
El-Rufai’s first visible public endorsement of the ex-Lagos gov came when he vacated his official seat for him during Tinubu’s visit to Kaduna to seek delegate support ahead of the primary.
According to Sunday Punch, Sources familiar with the development said that Tinubu reached out to influential Muslim leaders across the country to persuade El-Rufai not to abandon what was framed as a broader Muslim brotherhood cause.
From that point, the relationship transformed dramatically.
El-Rufai emerged as one of Tinubu’s key campaign strategists, taking on prominent political battles. He was among the APC figures who accompanied Tinubu to Chatham House in the United Kingdom, where he fielded questions on behalf of the presidential candidate.
At a 2023 event, Tinubu publicly urged El-Rufai to serve in his cabinet, declaring he would not leave the podium until the former governor agreed.
Ministerial rejection and the 2031 calculations
El-Rufai’s nomination as a minister, however, ran into trouble. The Senate declined to confirm him, citing security concerns reportedly contained in a Department of State Services report.
The rejection marked a turning point in his relationship with Tinubu and the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
Sources within the DSS alleged that the rivalry between El-Rufai and Ribadu both seen in some quarters as potential 2031 presidential aspirants contributed to the impasse.
“The crisis between the two former friends is about 2031 politics”, a senior DSS officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.
“Both of them want to succeed Tinubu. El-Rufai couldnt make the cabinet because the NSA was not favourable to his nomination. If both were in the cabinet, El-Rufai would outshine Ribadu, and that would not be allowed to happen. That is the genesis of their fight.”
Following the failed nomination, El-Rufais tone towards Tinubu’s administration hardened.
He resumed open criticism of the President and the APC, insisting that the administration had derailed and would be removed. The former governor eventually resigned from the APC on March 10, 2025 to join the coalition of opposition leaders against Tinubu.
The Kaduna probe
Beyond his strained relationship with Tinubu and Ribadu, El-Rufai has also faced political headwinds at home. His successor, Governor Uba Sani, distanced himself from him shortly after assuming office.
On June 5, 2024, the Kaduna State House of Assembly released a report indicting El-Rufai over the alleged misappropriation of more than N423bn.
The Assembly recommended that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission investigate and prosecute him.
Although El-Rufai denied the allegations and filed suits challenging the Assembly’s actions, both the EFCC and ICPC continued their investigations.
From EFCC to ICPC detention
On February 11, 2026, during an interview with BBC Hausa, El-Rufai raised concerns that he could be arrested at any time. Days later, operatives of the DSS reportedly attempted to arrest him at the Abuja airport upon his return from Egypt. The incident sparked public drama, and his passport was seized.
On Monday, February 16, El-Rufai honoured an EFCC invitation over the alleged N423bn fraud. He was detained until February 18 night before being granted bail.
Shortly after his release, however, ICPC operatives took him into custody over related allegations. This was as the DSS filed charges in a case marked FHC/ABJ/CR/99/2026 against El-Rufai, accusing him of unlawfully intercepting the telephone lines of the NSA, Ribadu. The case is still pending before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of a Federal High Court in Abuja.
However, the former governor filed an application to quash the charges the DSS filed against him for being incompetent, for disclosing no offence known to law, and for constituting a gross abuse of court process.
The arraignment and remand
On Tuesday, El-Rufai was arraigned on 10 counts before Justice Rilwan Aikawa of a Federal High Court in Kaduna.
The charges revolved around corruption and financial misconduct, including alleged money laundering, abuse of office, conversion of public property, and unlawful possession of public funds/assets.
But the former Kaduna governor pleaded not guilty to the charges.
El-Rufais media assissistant, Muyiwa Adekeye, while providing an update on the arraignment, stated that the ex-governors legal team expressed surprise that Justice Aikawa presided over the case, citing a pending petition against the judge before the National Judicial Council.
The judge, however, ruled that he would proceed with the arraignment and consider any application for recusal if formally filed.
The case was adjourned to March 31, 2026, for hearing of bail and other applications concerning El-Rufai and a co-defendant, Joel Adoga.
Sunday Punch gathered that the Court of Appeal in Kaduna had, on March 17, 2026, set aside a previous judgment by Justice Aikawa in a fundamental rights suit filed by El-Rufai, ruling that he had been denied fair hearing and ordering a retrial.
Mixed reactions trail travail
A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and House of Representatives aspirant for Ikara/Kubau Federal Constituency in Kaduna State, Sheriff Abubakar, described El-Rufai’s travail as a clear depiction of deceit and a breach of trust by allies.
He said the country was witnessing a dangerous political stunt, with El-Rufai being humiliated by people he helped to attain power.
He said, Many Nigerians are being deceived by headlines portraying him as a nationalist and crusader of Nigeria’s modern politics, while he is being subjected to abysmal blackmail through the forceful and cunning scripting of fictitious claims under the guise of legal and constitutional accountability and due process.
But alas! We are witnessing a heartbreaking moment of dismay, a situation we can all define as a dangerous political stunt that may, in the near future, turn against those mismanaging laws and public offices to serve selfish political interests or those of their paymasters, whether in office or after retirement.
In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends, as Martin Luther King Jr. said.
To Atiku Abubakar, the alleged politically motivated persecution of El-Rufai by law enforcement agencies has exposed the state of the country’s unsupervised public sector, which he said requires a serious system overhaul to reclaim its mandate of accountability and justice.
“I also appeal to the judiciary to uphold justice in its legal processes concerning a statesman and respected individual.
“Unless betrayed, our loyalty and fidelity to friends are permanent and enduring. Likewise, unless reconciled, our opposition and enmity toward traitors remain permanent, he added.
Speaking ahead of El-Rufai’s arraignment, the spokesman for the Middle Belt Forum, Luka Binniyat, said the former governor was often bitter whenever he was outside the corridors of power. He described the former governor as attention-seeking.
“El-Rufai has long projected himself as an unrelenting seeker of attention. He is always uncomfortable outside the spotlight. Whenever the doors of power appear closed to him, his bitterness and rage often flow without restraint.
“It was perhaps only a matter of time before such unguarded utterances would land him in serious trouble.
“His reported admission that he and his associates tapped into the phone line of the National Security Adviser, whether fabricated or factual, cannot be dismissed lightly. Such a claim, particularly from someone who has openly declared his intention to unseat the current government, raises grave concerns.
“While I strongly support due judicial process in addressing the matter, I maintain that El-Rufai cannot plausibly frame any arrest as politically motivated. The conduct he is said to have confessed to amounts, in my considered view, to nothing short of treason”, he added.
Mothers death and temporary bail
While El-Rufai was battling his alleged fraud case, a more painful incident occurred on Friday, as he lost his mother, Hajiya Umma El-Rufai.
The matriarch died in Cairo, Egypt, where she had been receiving treatment.
However, the ICPC granted El-Rufai temporary bail to enable him perform the funeral rites of his late mother.
