Tinubu El-Rufai Feud Explodes: Aisha Yesufu Claims President Sidelined Ex-Governor to Render Him “Politically Irrelevant” Amid 2027 Power Plays
In the swirling undercurrents of Nigerian politics, where alliances shatter like fragile glass, a fresh bombshell has dropped: President Bola Tinubu allegedly orchestrated the public sidelining of his one-time ally, former Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufai, not out of security concerns, but to humiliate him and strip away his towering influence. This explosive accusation, leveled by fiery activist Aisha Yesufu just hours ago, reignites a feud that’s been smoldering since El-Rufai’s dramatic ministerial rejection in 2023, casting long shadows over the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 elections.
The claim erupted on social media Friday evening, as Yesufu dissected the fallout from a separate scandal involving Minister Uche Nnaji’s forged NYSC certificate—a case where the Department of State Services (DSS) allegedly missed red flags during screening. In a pointed X post that quickly amassed thousands of views, Yesufu dismissed the DSS as a mere “excuse” in El-Rufai’s saga. “Nasir El-Rufai’s case is that Tinubu wanted to humiliate him,” she wrote. “Even if DSS had found him wanting, with the National Assembly deeply in Tinubu’s pocket, he could have commanded to confirm him.” She painted a picture of calculated betrayal: Tinubu could’ve bypassed Senate hurdles with a non-confirmation role or elevated El-Rufai as a shadowy power broker, akin to Muhammadu Buhari’s nephew Mamman Daura. Instead, he “left him out in the cold,” ensuring El-Rufai’s descent into irrelevance.
This isn’t idle gossip; it’s rooted in a timeline of political maneuvering that dates back to the APC’s 2023 primaries. El-Rufai, the cerebral architect of Buhari’s 2015 upset, threw his weight behind Tinubu’s bid, rallying Kaduna delegates and campaigning fiercely despite whispers of initial reluctance. Post-victory, Tinubu publicly pleaded with the reluctant El-Rufai to join his cabinet during a June 2023 interview, where the ex-governor admitted he’d planned a sabbatical abroad but relented for party unity. Yet, when El-Rufai’s nomination for the Ministry of Power landed in the Senate, anonymous petitions—alleging security risks and past misdeeds—derailed it in a humiliating spectacle. El-Rufai, ever the strategist, later confided in Arise TV that he’d never sought the role but felt the sting of public rejection.
Fast-forward to 2025, and the rift has widened into a chasm. El-Rufai, now a vocal critic, has lambasted Tinubu’s reforms—from food imports crippling farmers to whispers of tenure extension plots. In a February BBC interview, he warned that re-electing Tinubu could morph the presidency into a “life term,” drawing ire from APC loyalists who branded him a “political laggard” desperate for relevance. Presidential aide Bayo Onanuga fired back in September, accusing El-Rufai and like-minded plotters of gunning for Tinubu’s ouster out of sheer envy, vowing to dredge up the ex-governor’s old admissions that four years isn’t enough for real change. Northern groups, like the Arewa Youth Leaders Forum, have disowned him as “divisive” and “irrelevant,” even in his home base of Kaduna, where APC fortunes dipped under his watch.
Public reactions mirror Nigeria’s polarized pulse. On X, Yesufu’s thread exploded with over 77,000 views, sparking a frenzy of agreement from opposition voices like those echoing Rufai Oseni’s takedown of DSS lapses. Supporters of El-Rufai hail him as a principled whistleblower, with users like @IU_Wakilii sharing throwback clips to underscore the “setup” betrayal. Critics, however, see sour grapes: Reno Omokri lambasted El-Rufai’s “Yoruba-led government” jabs as ethnic baiting from a spurned opportunist. Even religious figures like Sheikh Dr. Idriz Abdulaziz weighed in, suggesting El-Rufai’s pivot stems from denied perks, not patriotism. Solomon Dalung, ex-Sports Minister, quipped that Tinubu “lured” El-Rufai just to crush him—a sentiment echoed in viral clips from December 2024.
For everyday Nigerians, this Tinubu-El-Rufai drama transcends elite squabbles, slicing into the economy’s jugular. El-Rufai’s broadsides against subsidy removal and naira floats have amplified public fury over 30% inflation and food scarcity, per recent NBS data. His irrelevance, if Yesufu’s thesis holds, robs the nation of a sharp mind who could’ve turbocharged power sector fixes—Kaduna’s grids stabilized under him, after all. Politically, it signals APC fractures that could splinter northern votes in 2027, boosting opposition bids like Peter Obi’s Labour Party surge. Technologically, El-Rufai’s tech-savvy governance (think Kaduna’s digital overhauls) contrasts Tinubu’s stumbles, like the Nnaji forgery fiasco, eroding trust in federal digitization drives.
Lifestyle hits hard too: As families grapple with blackouts and soaring bills, El-Rufai’s sidelining feels like lost potential for the 200 million Nigerians enduring 18-hour outages. Sports fans recall his infrastructure pushes that could’ve upgraded stadia, tying into broader calls for accountability. User intent here is clear—readers seek unvarnished truth amid spin, craving context on how personal vendettas derail national progress. Managing this narrative means sifting fact from feud: Verified Senate records confirm the petitions, but no probe has cleared El-Rufai, fueling speculation.
The betrayal echoes louder in 2025’s charged air, with El-Rufai vowing to “get Tinubu out” before he “destroys Nigeria,” per a June Sahara Reporters exclusive. Yesufu’s verdict? It’s “na dem dem”—elite chess where pawns like the public pay the price. As 2027 looms, this Tinubu El-Rufai rift, laced with humiliation and political irrelevance, could redefine power dynamics, forcing voters to demand loyalty beyond boardrooms. Will reforms heal the wounds, or deepen the divide? The board is set, and Nigeria watches.
By Sam Michael
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