We’re not friends, El-Rufai speaks on relationship with Uba Sani

Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has cleared the air on speculations about his relationship with his successor, Senator Uba Sani.

Speaking on Sunday, El-Rufai stated that while he and Governor Sani are not personal friends, there is no bad blood between them. He emphasized that political differences or personal preferences should not be mistaken for enmity.

El-Rufai, who played a key role in Uba Sani’s emergence as Kaduna State governor in 2023, dismissed rumours suggesting a rift between them. The speculations had gained momentum following his recent criticisms of certain Federal Government policies, as well as issues tied to the Kaduna State Government.

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But speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, the former minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) said both men were never friends.

El-Rufai said, “I’ve not fallen out with the governor. No, he is not my friend. He was my boy, my mentee. We have not fallen out. I still don’t speak with him,” he stated.

“My biggest pride in life is that I have encouraged and elevated many people to greatness, some even greater than me, and I am very proud of it.

“But when a person derails, when he doesn’t do the right thing, because I contributed to getting him there, I am prohibited from commenting? Is that what the country has become?”

During the interview, he accused the governor of being behind the attack at the Kaduna African Democratic Congress (ADC) committee inauguration in Kaduna last Saturday and other opposition politicians in the state.

El-Rufai claimed that there was evidence that the state governor orchestrated the attack.

He said, “I have evidence; Kaduna State Governor is behind Saturday’s attacks. I will submit evidence to the IGP and other authorities if they care to investigate.”

He further lamented that “the policing system has collapsed in Nigeria,” alleging that police operatives were watching when the opposition figures came under attack.

Chaos erupted at the official inauguration of a transition committee jointly set up by opposition parties in Kaduna State last Saturday, after suspected political thugs invaded the event.

El-Rufai, who has since dissociated himself from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is one of the leaders of the opposition coalition that chose the ADC as its political platform for the 2023 general elections.