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By Goli Innocent
Former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has accused President Bola Tinubu of being bent on remaining in office “at all costs” ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
El-Rufai, now aligned with the coalition-backed African Democratic Congress (ADC), made the remarks on Thursday while hosting former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, shortly after what he described as an attempted arrest at the Abuja airport by security operatives.
According to him, the opposition must begin early mobilisation to dislodge what he termed a “tyrannical” administration led by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
“We have reduced security agencies to the arms of a political party, and this government has noticed it is unelectable and wants to remain in power at all costs,” El-Rufai said. “What has happened has reinforced my belief that we must not sleep between now and March 2027 until we remove these tyrants.”
El-Rufai described the airport episode as “unfortunate and totally unnecessary,” alleging that due process was not followed.
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He claimed that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) enlisted operatives of the State Security Service (SSS), also known as the DSS, to detain him despite not issuing a formal invitation.
According to him, while the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had earlier written to invite him for questioning to which his lawyers responded he had received no such communication from the ICPC.
El-Rufai further alleged that the ICPC chairman acted on the directive of the National Security Adviser, though no official response had been issued by the agencies mentioned as of press time.
The former governor’s comments underscore the rising political tension as alignments and counter-alignments gradually take shape ahead of the 2027 presidential poll.
With opposition figures openly calling for coordinated mobilisation and the ruling party maintaining confidence in its record, the contest for 2027 is already beginning to assume the familiar intensity of Nigeria’s high-stakes electoral politics.
