NaijNaira
The Presidency has pushed back strongly against Nasir El-Rufai’s claim that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu plans to extend his rule beyond constitutional limits — www.naijnaira.com reports.
According to Sahara Reporters, the former Kaduna State governor told Atiku Abubakar during a recent meeting that Nigeria’s current administration is gradually slipping into authoritarianism.
Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, dismissed the accusations, insisting, “President Tinubu is a democrat who does not intend to stay in office beyond May 28, 2031, when re-elected in 2027.”
El-Rufai had compared Tinubu’s ambition to Cameroon’s Paul Biya, who has remained in power since 1982, but the Presidency described that comparison as “baseless and absurd.”
Onanuga further said El-Rufai “appears to need some help, especially given his recent unfounded claims and speculations about President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”
He argued that El-Rufai underestimated the warm reception Tinubu received during his visit to Kaduna, adding that it proves the North is still solidly behind the President.
The aide alleged that El-Rufai and his new political allies are working to block Tinubu’s second-term bid, but insisted the plan is “a mission doomed to fail.”
“Governor Uba Sani may wish to reach out to his predecessor,” Onanuga noted, suggesting El-Rufai might benefit from professional counselling to move away from what he called “hallucinations and political fabrications.”
