Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and Nasir el-Rufai
Nasir el-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna, has warned that President Bola Tinubu could attempt to cling to power like Cameroon’s Paul Biya if Nigerians fail to unite against him in the 2027 elections.
El-Rufai made the remarks on Saturday evening when he received Atiku Abubakar, former vice-president, who paid him a solidarity visit following an attack by what he described as “APC-sponsored thugs” during the inauguration of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Kaduna.
“The sum total of this is that we are facing an evil of such a large proportion in the history of this country that if we don’t come together and end this Tinubu administration by 2027, Tinubu will try to be our Paul Biya. All the signs are there, this is how Paul Biya started,” el-Rufai said.
He described the Tinubu government as a “disgrace” to democratic ideals, accusing it of centralising authority rather than strengthening federalism.
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“Honestly, sir, to me, it is even a disgrace. I mean, for people to behave the way they are behaving, it means that all the years of saying that we are for democracy and NADECO, all the claims that we are fighting for true federalism and so on — it was all a pretence, all fake again. Because this government (Tinubu’s administration) is trying to centralize everything instead of devolving power to the lower levels,” he said.
El-Rufai said Atiku’s long history of opposition politics and his democratic credentials were needed to rally resistance against Tinubu ahead of 2027.
“You (Atiku) are our leader, you have done this fight before, you have fought the military, you have experience in democratic governance. And when you and Obasanjo were in charge of this country, no one was being harassed because he had a different political view, never, not once,” he said.
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“Even President Buhari, with his military background, never did that, and here we are facing full-fledged civilians, but they are worse than any military regime we’ve ever had. Your call that we must unite is a timely one.
“I think the people of Nigeria have made up their minds that APC must be voted out. Nigerians are looking forward to his (Tinubu’s) ouster.
“We must provide the leadership and the unity of purpose that we have talked about, and then I am sure with your leadership, forbearance and diplomatic skills of bringing people together, I am sure we will reach the promised land.”
Responding, Atiku applauded el-Rufai’s courage and urged opposition leaders to remain focused on ensuring that Tinubu’s administration was checked and ultimately removed through the ballot box.
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