El-Rufai reveals Buhari’s blessing before dumping APC for SDP

Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has disclosed that he sought and received the blessing of ex-President Muhammadu Buhari before his defection from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

Speaking in an interview with the BBC Hausa Service on Thursday, El-Rufai revealed that he met Buhari on March 7 to inform him about his plan to leave the ruling party. He described Buhari as one of the few political godfathers he respected, whose opinion could have influenced his decision.

“I met with him [Buhari] on Friday and told him about my consultations in preparation to leave the party. I sought his blessing and prayers and told him about the new party I am joining. And he gave his blessing, prayed for me, and wished me success.

“He [Buhari] told me that he is now a statesman while we remain the politicians. He said he knew we had good intentions and then prayed for us,” El-Rufai stated.

The former governor also took a swipe at APC leaders, saying he had no regrets about leaving the party.

“I quit their party and challenged them to eat it if it is food,” he remarked.

Addressing speculation that he left APC to avoid being expelled, El-Rufai insisted that he would have preferred to be sacked instead.

“Well, it would have been better for me if they expelled me. I have always said APC would be my last political party. Had they expelled me, they would have saved me the trouble of explaining why I left. But the truth is, I did not leave the APC—the APC left me,” he said.

El-Rufai also dismissed claims that he abandoned APC because he was not appointed as a minister in President Bola Tinubu’s administration. He alleged that some individuals paid money to secure ministerial positions, adding that he never lobbied for one.

“That is what they always say. But did I ever lobby to become a minister? I know those who paid money to get appointments,” he said.

According to him, Tinubu personally begged him to join his government and help resolve Nigeria’s persistent power crisis.

“Perhaps if he [Tinubu] made a private promise to appoint me, he would have denied it. But he publicly begged me in Kaduna to come and work with him. Even then, I did not accept immediately. It was only after a private discussion that I considered his request.

“He told me power problems have hindered Nigeria’s development, and past leaders failed to solve them. He wanted to be the president who fixed electricity in Nigeria and sought my help. That was the only reason I considered working with him—I thought he was serious,” El-Rufai explained.

When asked if he felt betrayed by Tinubu, the former governor responded, “No, he betrayed himself.”

On whether he regrets supporting Tinubu’s presidential bid, El-Rufai admitted he was disappointed but stopped short of calling it a regret.

“Well, I can’t say I regret it, but I am disappointed,” he concluded.