The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has criticised former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai for accusing the APC of poor leadership and encouraging opposition parties to set aside their differences and form a united front ahead of the 2027 election.
The presidency accused the APC chieftain of treachery for dragging the federal government and the ruling party recently.
El-Rufai described the state of governance and opposition in Nigeria as a “national emergency” during a national conference on strengthening democracy in Abuja.
El-Rufai also lamented the lack of internal democracy and active party structures within the APC, saying, “I no longer recognise the APC. No party organ has met in two years—no caucus, no NEC, nothing. You don’t even know if it is a one-man show; it’s a zero-man show.”
El-Rufai urged political parties to set greater standards for candidates and delegates, stating that the constitution’s basic requirement of a secondary school diploma should not be enough for party nominations.
El-Rufai reflected on the APC’s origins, saying the ruling party was founded to tackle corruption, rebuild the economy, and improve security.
He did, however, say that the aims had been abandoned.
The APC chieftain asked opposition parties to get together and build a broad alliance to oppose the ruling party and safeguard democracy.
He said that sponsored mercenaries were orchestrating internal opposition party conflicts.
“There are internal mercenaries in the PDP, hired and motivated to destroy the party. The Labour Party is also facing similar issues. Peter Obi himself told me, ‘I don’t know what’s happening in the party I contested with.’
“There seems to be a deliberate project to destroy opposition parties. This is dangerous. For those of us who lived half our lives under military rule, we know what it is. We don’t want military rule, but we also don’t want civilians behaving like the military in their babbarriga and suits.
“This is a national emergency, and we must act before history repeats itself,” El-Rufai appealed.
The presidency has since responded to his sharp criticism.
Daniel Bwala, special adviser to the president on policy communications, expressed disappointment in a post on his official X account, claiming that El-Rufai’s views would have been different if he had been in President Bola Tinubu’s Cabinet.
He tweeted, “My senior brother, if you were to be in the government and cabinet, would you have held and expressed the same position?
“History is replete with examples. It is a government you participated in its formation that you now want to unseat. Haba Mallam, a Ji soron Allah mana.”
Similarly, the APC’s National Publicity Director, Bala Ibrahim, stated that El-Rufai would have done better if he had directed his concerns and observations to the party leadership rather than constantly criticising it publicly.
Ibrahim did, however, add that the previous governor has the right to his opinion.
He said, “The beauty of democracy is that it gives people the right to express their own opinion. El-Rufai, as an individual, party member, former governor, ex-minister, and a well-respected politician, is entitled to his opinion. But that is not to say that is exactly what is happening in the APC.
“It’s all a question of views, perspectives, and circumstances surrounding issues. I wouldn’t want to go deep into the internal issues of the party and the position of El-Rufa today with regards to the party. But I can assure you, the APC is a listening party. The APC, under the leadership of Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, gives people the chance to ventilate their views.
“If there is any grouse or any misunderstanding, he always gives people the chance to come and talk. So, El-Rufai knows best how to channel this complaint, and if there are certain things he wants done to sanitise what he feels is going wrong, he knows what to do. I can assure you, the party will give him the listening ear.”
Meanwhile, opposition parties in the country have endorsed El-Rufai, claiming that the ruling APC has abandoned its campaign manifestos and commitments to Nigerians.
