Despite his recent association with opposition groups, former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, remains a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), a party chieftain in the state, Bashir Jamoh, has said.
Speaking to journalists in Kaduna on Thursday, Jamoh, a former Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), said the state chapter of the APC still consults El-Rufai and receives guidance from him without hesitation or charges.
“We are yet to reach the point where we will say farewell to Mallam Nasir El-Rufai,” Jamoh said. “When we need his advice, we consult him, and he gives it freely.”
El-Rufai, who served two terms as governor of Kaduna State under the APC, reportedly left the party months ago, citing lack of internal democracy under President Bola Tinubu’s leadership. He was later linked to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and more recently to an opposition coalition that adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
But Jamoh insisted El-Rufai has not officially cut ties with the APC.
“You cannot disown your child of eight years. He was governor for eight years under the APC. Even before then, while in the PDP and later CPC — which formed the APC — he contributed to building this party,” Jamoh added.
The comments come amid growing rumours of El-Rufai’s political realignment ahead of future elections, with some observers seeing him as a key figure in emerging opposition movements. However, the APC in Kaduna appears unwilling to completely let go of one of its strongest former members.
