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El Rufai and the Transient Nature of Power
Rev. Fr. Williams Kaura Abba
Nasir El Rufai was a larger than life figure that seemed exaggerated or important than usual. I hate to remember the days my state was ravaged by insecurity and the wanton killings that went on unabated while he held sway.
Communities were razed down. Citizens were murdered in their sleep. Traditional rulers with strong voices were humiliated and even killed and to this moment, no one has been brought to justice. Fingers were pointed in one direction but no one could nail him to the crime. And so Agwam Adara’s murder remains an unsolved murder case.
We criticised El Rufai through our writings and took him on. I made visits to the CID at the invitation of police. He threatened us with arrest and did the worst he could with journalists and opinion leaders. Luka Biniyat, and the Adara Elders spent time in prison for speaking out or for daring to challenge the maximum ruler.
El Rufai was ruthless and inhuman. He never hid his disdain for my people and treated us like scum of the earth. Whether it was in the area of sharing resources, appointments or project allocation, Southern Kaduna didn’t stand a chance with him.
Eight years have quickly rolled by and thankfully, we have a new sheriff in town, someone in the saddle who is showing some semblance of fairness. One year after, we can heave a sigh of relief. It’s not yet uhuru and we are not where we want to be in terms of fairness, but we can say: so far, so good…
With El Rufai, the chicken has come home to roost. His mischief, silliness, wickedness and wrongdoings are coming back not only to embarrass him, but to hunt and hurt him and cause him serious problems, politically.
The members of the Kaduna State House of Assembly have concluded their investigation and the panel’s report is unambiguous. And the screaming headlines are interesting: “El Rufai’s government stole our state blind and raped our treasury”. The report so far has determined that a whopping 400 billion Naira plus, was stolen by the same man who prided himself as Mr integrity that governed without stealing a dime and who was proud of his public record as governor.
Well, it remains for the courts to either affirm the report of the panel or clear him of the heavy allegations mounted against him. But, the huge loans El Rufai took in foreign and local currencies, when matched with the so called infrastructure in the state, leaves so much to be desired.
Our state, especially Southern Kaduna axis is littered with all kinds of abandoned projects. The only road El Rufai thought to repair is the Kafanchan – Kwoi Road that has sadly remained a conduit pipe, spanning more than 5 years. Come rain, come shine, our people are left to bear the brunt of a disastrous and evil game put together by the El Rufai administration.
A day of reckoning will always come. That day for El Rufai is here. The people he contemptibly treated are having the last laugh. Even friends and allies who queued behind him and were cheering him on are now singing a new song and forming new alliances. His mentees who had an uncanny reputation for gaslighting us are either singing dirges or saying mea culpa.
The arrogant voices with which they defended every policy and step he took are silent, highlighting their quietude and wise passivity. And who wouldn’t? Rarara who sang praises of him as governor is now deriding and mocking him in his new song to the delight of El Rufai’s successor and a group of loyalists who were before now, his close allies. The song on our lips now is “ginau ya fi rusau” (a euphemism for building is better than destruction). Once power has left you, the friends you thought you had will be gone.
While we wait with bated breath and hope that the courts recover some of our stolen monies, I make bold to advise leaders to be fair to the people and fear God Almighty. When God gives you power, use the opportunity for positive impact. Long after you are gone, let people say, we had a good leader and he was kind to us.
The Northern Youths Consultative Forum for Justice (NYCJ) has urged Nigerian President Bola Tinubu to declare a state of emergency in Zamfara State, citing a complete breakdown of governance, law, and order.
In a statement issued on Monday in Kano, NYCJ President Dr Sanusi Rano described the situation in Zamfara as “organised abandonment of duty” by elected officials.
“What we are witnessing in Zamfara is not governance. It is betrayal of the people,” Rano said, pointing to the absence of a functional state House of Assembly and allegations linking officials to criminal activities.
The group highlighted the suspension of 10 lawmakers who spoke out against the deteriorating security situation, arguing that their removal has left Zamfara without a legally recognised legislative body.
“This is a dictatorship of silence,” said Rano, adding that the lack of checks and balances has deepened the state’s crisis.
“The same hands that should protect Zamfara are profiting from its destruction,” Rano stated.
Calling for decisive action, the group demanded the appointment of a non-partisan administrator to rebuild the state’s institutions.
“If this is not done now, Zamfara risks becoming a permanent state of anarchy, which threatens our democracy,” Rano warned.
Justice Nwosu-Iheme of a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Wuse Zone 2, Abuja, on Monday, sentenced the husband of late gospel singer, Osinachi, Peter Nwachukwu, to death by hanging.
Nwachukwu was found guilty of culpable homicide resulting in the death of the deceased ( his wife) on April 8, 2022.
The judge held that the prosecution had proven the burden of proof placed on it by the law and subsequently found the defendant guilty.
Nwachukwu was arraigned on June 3, 2022 by the Office of Attorney-General of the Federation (OAGF), on behalf of the Federal Government, on a 23-count charge .
The charge was on culpable homicide punishable with death, criminal intimidation, cruelty to children, criminal intimidation of children, spousal battery, among others.
In the course of trial, the prosecution called 17 witnesses, including two children of the late Osinachi, who testified as fourth prosecution and fifth prosecution witnesses, PW4 and PW5 respectively.
The prosecution also tendered 25 documents as exhibits before the court.
The defendant testified for the defence and further called four other witnesses and tendered four exhibits in his defence.
Shortly before sentencing, the defendant, counsel , Reginald Nwali, in his allocutus pleaded with the court to be lenient in its judgment.
Similarly, the prosecution counsel, Mrs Aderonke Imala, urged the court to give force to the law as stipulated.
Justice Nwosu-Iheme subsequently sentenced Nwachukwu to death by hanging on Count 1, while he was sentenced to two years imprisonment each on Counts 2, 3, 8,9, 12, 13, and 18.
The court sentenced the defendant to six months imprisonment on Count 10, three years imprisonment in Count 11, while he was fined the sum of N500,000 and N200,000 respectively on Counts 6 and 7 respectively. (NAN)
A group of lawyers under the banner of the Guardian of Democracy and Rule of Law staged a massive protest at the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja on Monday, demanding a judicial inquiry into the tenure of Mele Kolo Kyari, the former Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL).
The protesters, led by Barrister Benjamin Theophilus, submitted a petition alleging widespread corruption, tax evasion, abuse of office, and misappropriation of public funds during Kyari’s leadership.
The petition highlighted several contentious issues, including inflated costs of refinery rehabilitation contracts, fraudulent crude oil allocations, mismanagement of the AKK Gas Pipeline Project, fuel subsidy fraud, and questionable crude-backed loans.
According to the petition, NNPCL under Kyari spent over $4 billion on rehabilitating the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries, far exceeding an initial private-sector proposal of $1 billion for all three facilities.
“Kyari is alleged to have collaborated with consultants and contractors to conceal the actual cost of contracts and evade taxes,” the petition stated, noting that the refineries remain inefficient despite the expenditure.
The lawyers also accused Kyari of overseeing the diversion of crude oil allocations under the pretext of “pipeline security” at a rate of 80,000 barrels per day, with no transparent accountability mechanisms.
The $5 billion AKK Gas Pipeline Project was similarly flagged for irregularities in contract awards and execution, with little progress despite significant funding.
Further allegations include fuel subsidy fraud, with NNPCL reportedly increasing petroleum imports in 2020 during a global decline in fuel consumption due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The petition also criticised crude-backed loans totalling $21.565 billion since 2019, which it claimed disadvantaged Nigeria by ceding trading profits to international traders.
The protesters called for a judicial commission to investigate Kyari’s tenure, probe payments to refinery contractors, and examine past audit failures.
They also urged the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to investigate suspected tax evasion and fraudulent declarations, while advocating for the recovery of any misappropriated public funds.
The Federal Ministry of Finance has yet to respond to the petition, and NNPCL officials were unavailable for comment at the time of reporting.