A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Niger State, Jonathan Vatsa, has taken a swipe at former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, over his recent remarks suggesting that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu could turn into a “life president” if re-elected in 2027.
Speaking in Minna, Vatsa dismissed El-Rufai’s comments as the rant of a “wounded lion” who has lost political relevance after failing to secure a place in Tinubu’s cabinet.
He accused the former governor of leaving behind a legacy of division, claiming that El-Rufai’s eight years in office were marked by heightened ethnic and religious tensions.
“The whole world saw how El-Rufai unleashed bandits and terrorists against the Southern Kaduna people for eight years. Blood flowed freely in Kaduna under his watch,” Vatsa alleged.
According to the former Commissioner for Information, El-Rufai’s leadership failures have made him an electoral liability. “Any political party that fields El-Rufai will lose elections in Kaduna and across Nigeria. He misruled the state, and the people have not forgiven him,” he declared.
Vatsa maintained that the APC’s loss in Kaduna during the last presidential election was a direct result of El-Rufai’s unpopularity. He advised the ex-governor to “retire quietly from politics” as his continued involvement “will yield nothing.”
On the issue of Tinubu’s second-term prospects, Vatsa dismissed fears of political domination, stressing that Nigeria’s zoning agreement allows the South to complete its eight-year tenure before power returns to the North in 2031.
He concluded by urging leaders to prioritise national unity over selfish regional interests.
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