President Tinubu never wanted me in his cabinet — El-Rufai

Mr. Nasir El-Rufai, former Kaduna State Governor, has refuted claims that the National Assembly rejected his ministerial nomination, stating that it was President Bola Tinubu who did not want him in the cabinet.

Recall that after Mr Tinubu was sworn in as president in 2023, he nominated 48 people for ministerial positions including Mr El-Rufai.

But the Senate rejected the former governor and two others, citing security reasons.

The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, explained that the rejected nominees would be subjected to further security checks, urging them to take the matter to Mr Tinubu.

But while speaking during an interview on Arise TV on Monday, El-Rufai clarified that the narrative surrounding his rejection was misleading.

He Tinubu personally asked him to suspend his plans for a ministerial appointment.

El-Rufai said, “The president publicly appealed to me to put my plans on hold, and through two months of negotiation, we finally agreed that he will nominate me as minister.

“There were certain conditions I attached to that. I think along the line either the president changed his mind or something else.

“Please don’t believe the story that the national assembly rejected me. The president did not want me in his cabinet. He changed his mind.”