The National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ajibola Basiru, has accused former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai of pushing an ethnic agenda against President Bola Tinubu due to his failed bid for a ministerial appointment.
Indications suggest El-Rufai is rallying northern political elites against Tinubu’s re-election ahead of the 2027 polls.
The former Kaduna state governor was dropped from the ministerial list in 2023 over alleged “security concerns,” a move believed to be linked to his rivalry with National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu.
In recent weeks, El-Rufai has been meeting with key opposition figures, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, whom he previously accused of corruption.
Last Friday, he accompanied Atiku on a condolence visit to the family of elder statesman Chief Edwin Clark, where he praised Atiku’s role in economic reforms under the Obasanjo administration.
El-Rufai has also engaged in high-level political discussions with the Kaduna State PDP executive committee and former APC National Chairman Abdullahi Adamu, fueling speculation about a potential realignment ahead of 2027.
Amid his growing criticism of the APC, El-Rufai recently shared a post warning that Tinubu might face a “Goodluck Jonathan treatment” if his strained relationship with the North persists.
In response, APC’s Basiru dismissed El-Rufai as an “overrated ethnic champion,” accusing him of prioritizing sectional politics over national development.
He asserted that no one has a birthright to government appointments and insisted the APC remains united and focused on delivering the Renewed Hope Agenda.
His words: “I have told you before and am still telling you again that we are concerned about our affairs in the APC. For parties in Nigeria, it is free exit and free entry. So anybody is free to exit if he wants to exit. But we will not dignify such moves with any comment for now.
“We understand that sectional politics is what makes some people tick. Unfortunately, he (El-Rufai) is not thinking about the development of the country but is stoking up the ethnic nationality agenda. This South versus North posture shows that all along, he has been overrated as a person.
“The only thing we want to say is that governance is a serious matter and nobody has the birthright to be an appointee of government. There are more than 180 million Nigerians and quite a number of them are qualified.
“So, if you don’t have an opportunity to serve in a government, it does not mean that you should be going around and trying to become an emergency activist. As I said before, politics is a free exit and free entry. The APC is solid and we are forging ahead.”