El-Rufai suffers another setback as Uba Sani moves against his ministerial nominee, proposes someone else to Tinubu

 

These are not the best of times for ex-Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai. After being dropped as a ministerial nominee on grounds of a security report, the man he proposes to replace him, Jafaru Sani, may not be accepted.

According to a report by People’s Gazette, Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna has kicked against Jafaru Sani’s nomination. Sani was a commissioner in the administration of El-Rufai

Recall that after the Senate stepped down El-Rufai’s confirmation along two others, he reportedly withdrew interest in becoming a minister. Rather, he nominated Sani as his replacement.

The Gazette reported that while offering Jafaru Sani as his substitute, Mr El-Rufai told the president that he had informed Governor Sani about the choice and both parties had agreed.

But it turns out that Governor Sani has another plan. He rushed back from a trip to London on Thursday evening to tell Mr Tinubu at the State House that he was not in agreement with Jafaru Sani as the replacement, as per Gazette report.

“He has now told the president to expect another name,” the newspaper quoted a source under anonymity.

“He complained that Jafaru Sani has no political relevance in Kaduna and has been too loyal to El-Rufai,” the source added.

According to several media reports, the move against El-Rufai was orchestrated by national security adviser, Nuhu Ribadu,

The Gazette also reported that Mr Ribadu authorised a controversial security dossier that accused Mr El-Rufai of violence and corruption.

Among the allegations against Mr El-Rufai is his history of making inflammatory statements to rile up ethnic and religious embers, and was relentlessly accused of corruption as Abuja minister and Kaduna governor. He also deployed state resources to silence journalists and critics, a behavioral pattern that polarized opinions.