Senator Ali Ndume, representing Borno South, has taken aim at former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, suggesting that El-Rufai’s current political woes with President Bola Tinubu are a form of “payback” for abandoning former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, during the APC presidential primaries.
Ndume, who served as Director-General of Amaechi’s presidential campaign, made the remarks during an interview on Arise News on Tuesday. He used the opportunity to critique the current administration and issue a warning to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) about its future.
Expressing dissatisfaction with the state of governance under President Tinubu, Ndume said he would not hesitate to leave the APC if the administration fails to address the country’s mounting challenges.
“If I decide to leave the APC, I won’t do it in hiding. I still believe President Tinubu has the capacity to fix things, but if he fails, I may leave the party,” he stated.
Ndume also sounded the alarm over the mass defection of politicians into the APC, cautioning that it could destabilize the party.
“If Tinubu continues this way, it won’t matter how many people or governors join the APC. When you overload a ship, it sinks. The party could collapse under its own weight,” he warned.
Turning his attention to El-Rufai, the senator appeared to relish the former governor’s fall from political favour. Ndume recalled how El-Rufai initially backed Amaechi before switching his support to Tinubu.
“El-Rufai was with us—Amaechi’s camp—but he changed direction. Maybe what he’s facing now is part of the consequences of that decision,” Ndume remarked.
He added that Tinubu had encouraged El-Rufai to stay within the fold and even offered him a role in the government, but that didn’t materialize.
Ndume also recounted how, during El-Rufai’s ministerial screening, he and other senators nearly facilitated his confirmation before it was ultimately rejected.
“We almost gave him a smooth pass during the screening, but it didn’t work out. Sometimes I think, ‘Well, you did that to us—it’s payback time,’” he said.
El-Rufai, now a member of the opposition Social Democratic Party (SDP), has since become an outspoken critic of Tinubu’s leadership, particularly after being denied a place in the federal cabinet.
In a related development, earlier in June, Ndume accused presidential aides of misleading Tinubu on critical national issues during an appearance on Channels Television. He also claimed the current administration has been hijacked by what he called “kleptocrats” and “kakistocrats,” individuals more interested in personal gain than national progress.
