2027: El-Rufai’s move to dislodge Tinubu dead on arrival — Coalition

A coalition of the Gbagyi nation in Kaduna and the Middle Belt has criticised the former governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, over what they described as “unwarranted attacks on President Bola Tinubu.”

Speaking at a press conference in Kaduna, the leader of the coalition, Benjamin George, alleged that since El-Rufai failed to secure a ministerial appointment in the current administration, he has continued to express grievances through verbal assaults on the presidency.

According to George, the former governor’s criticisms of Tinubu stemmed from a place of personal disappointment and not national interest.

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“We discovered that since former Governor Nasir El-Rufai lost ministerial appointment in President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet, he has remained inconsolable, unleashing verbal attacks on Tinubu’s administration.

“He marginalised our people, sidelined us in governance, and denied us access to appointments and developmental projects,” George said.

He warned that El-Rufai’s recent moves to allegedly mobilise a political coalition to unseat President Tinubu in 2027 under the guise of public interest were nothing but a personal vendetta.

“It is very clear that his current move to mobilise politicians he had despised in the past, to unseat President Tinubu in 2027 as a revenge for losing ministerial position, is dead on arrival,” George said.

He further pledged their full support for President Bola Tinubu and Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State, insisting that both leaders are currently tackling the problems inherited from previous administrations.

“To this end, we have decided not to keep quiet and to tell the world categorically that the Gbagyi nation and the Middle Belt will never be part of any coalition orchestrated by Mal. Nasir El-Rufai and his cohorts against President Tinubu,” George added.

He, however, urged well-meaning Nigerians to disregard what he described as “El-Rufai’s utopian postulations and selfish machinations,” while expressing optimism that Tinubu’s government will succeed.

The coalition, comprising Gbagyi stakeholders from across the state, also accused El-Rufai of running an autocratic administration during his eight-year tenure as governor, adding that he marginalised Southern Kaduna communities, especially the Gbagyi people and the Christian community.

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