Alleged pressure to join APC behind arrest attempt, El-Rufai claims

By Johnson Arua

Former Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, has alleged that ongoing investigations into his activities and an attempted arrest by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, were politically motivated.

Speaking during an interview on Arise News, El-Rufai claimed the actions were aimed at compelling him to join the All Progressives Congress (APC) and publicly support President Bola Tinubu’s alleged second-term ambition ahead of 2027.

The former governor rejected suggestions that the investigations were routine law-enforcement processes, insisting instead that they were driven by political considerations.

“I have served in government from 1999 to 2007 and then for eight years afterward. I have always challenged anyone with evidence of wrongdoing to present it publicly,” he said.

El-Rufai recalled that he had faced investigations during the administration of former Presidents Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and Goodluck Jonathan, noting that those inquiries did not establish any case of corruption against him.

He also referenced a court decision dismissing a case concerning land allocation during his tenure as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.
Expressing confidence in his record, El-Rufai maintained that any scrutiny of financial and administrative decisions taken during his time in office would withstand investigation.

He further argued that due process requires investigations to be evidence-based, rather than involving arrest or detention before conclusions are reached.

Insisting that politics was at the heart of the matter, El-Rufai alleged that some officials within an anti-graft agency privately acknowledged discomfort with the situation.

“Some of the professionals in this institution feel very bad that they are being compelled,” he said. “When some of my associates that have been invited are questioned, they tell them, ‘We’re sorry, but this is all political.’”

According to him, associates were allegedly advised to “settle” politically in order to ease the pressure.

“‘Why don’t you guys go and settle with them?’ Settle with them means what? Submit to be a member of APC and agree that Tinubu will have a second term. That’s what it is,” he stated.