Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has claimed that some individuals within the Presidency, who are aligned with a candidate that lost an election primary, are now working against the APC.
Disclosing this during an interview with Channels TV on Wednesday morning, the governor cited the failure to remove the fuel subsidy as an outcome of the impasse within the party.
He noted that the Governors and Presidency earlier agreed to remove the subsidy in 2021. However, the Presidency did a U-turn on the agreement.
Clashing views: Speaking further, the Governor said that he has stopped trying to understand how the Federal Government works anymore following differing views on major fiscal and economic policy issues.
- “For the past 3-4 years I have stopped trying to understand how FG works. I focus on how to make my state works because that is how my state works. There are some things we sit and agree with the President to get done, and it does not get done, and those that refused to get it done don’t get punished.”
Internal sabotage: He added that the APC never promised to keep the fuel subsidy going. Unfortunately, the alleged saboteurs within the party have made it impossible to remove it. He said:
and also redesign the currency, urging that many members of the Presidency are not members of the party.
- “The APC never promised we are going to keep fuel subsidy. We never did. We never promised to redesign the currency. You need to separate the personal decisions of some people in the Presidency from the manifesto of the party. Most of them ( Presidency) are not members of the party.”
He said he believes there is a division between members of the Presidency and the Campaign council, stating, ” I believe there are elements in the villa that wants us to lose the election because they did not get their way, they and their candidate and he did not win the primaries, they are still getting us to lose the elections, they are hiding behind the President’s desire to do what he thinks is right
He noted the Petroleum subsidy costing the country was something the party agreed to be removed, adding he spoke to the Presidency back in 2021, who was convinced, but later changed his mind.
What you should know: Recall that Vice President Yemi Osinabjo contested the presidential primaries of the ruling APC last year. But he came in 3rd place behind Bola Tinubu and Rotimi Amaechi.
Highlighted below is how the delegates voted-
- Bola Ahmed Tinubu received 1271 votes
- Ahmed Lawan – 152 votes
- Rochas Okorocha – 0 vote
- Tunde Bakare – 0 vote
- Ben Ayade – 37 votes
- Yahaya Bello – 47 votes
- Yemi Osinbajo – 235 votes
- Rotimi Amaechi – 316 votes