Former Kaduna Governor Nasir el-Rufai has addressed the narrative surrounding the rejection of his ministerial nomination by the National Assembly, asserting that it is not accurate.
Gatekeepers News reports that in July 2023, President Bola Tinubu submitted a list of ministerial nominees to the Senate, which included el-Rufai.
However, in August 2023, the Senate decided to withhold confirmation for el-Rufai, alongside Stella Okotete from Delta and Danladi Abubakar from Taraba, citing issues related to security clearance. This decision has been interpreted by political analysts as an attempt to diminish el-Rufai’s influence within the presidential administration.
During an interview with Arise TV on Monday, el-Rufai expressed his belief that President Tinubu did not wish for him to be part of the cabinet and revealed that the president had publicly requested him to reconsider his intentions regarding the ministerial appointment.
“The president publicly appealed to me to put my plans on hold, and through two months of negotiation, we finally agreed that he will nominate me as minister,” he said.
“There were certain conditions I attached to that. I think along the line either the president changed his mind or something else.
“Please don’t believe the story that the national assembly rejected me. The president did not want me in his cabinet. He changed his mind.”
