4 hours ago
23
The presidency, on Tuesday, advised former governor of Kaduna State, Mallam NasirEl-Rufai, not to pull down the roof over Nigeria because he was not appointed minister by President Bola Tinubu. The advice followed recent outbursts of anger against the Tinubu government fron El-Rufai.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, advised El-Rufai to move on and stop expressing resentment over not being appointed minister in Tinubu’s cabinet.
Speaking in an interview in Abuja, Onanuga alleged that El-Rufai’s continued criticism of the government stemmed from his exclusion from the ministerial list. He urged the former governor to let go of the past.
Onanuga said, “As a person, I think I will pity the former governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai. He feels hurt that he was not made a minister, but I think it’s a long time; the ministers came in in August 2023. I think it’s time for him to move on.”
He stated that while it was understandable for El-Rufai to feel disappointed, it was unnecessary for him to go on a public campaign against the president.
Onanuga said regarding El-Rufai, “It’s natural for him to feel hurt, it’s natural for him to feel bad that he’s been excluded. And as the president acknowledged in a recent birthday tribute to him, Nasiru actually helped a lot in installing President Tinubu. But if he’s not there, it doesn’t mean that he must bring down the roof.”
Addressing concerns about the relationship between Tinubu and El-Rufai, Onanuga insisted that Tinubu held no personal grudge against the one-time Federal Capital Territory minister.
According to him, “The president has nothing personally against Nasiru, and so if Nasiru feels naturally hurt that he has been excluded, and that’s why he’s going about everywhere campaigning against the president, it shows a man who resents being left out of the moving train and who will not let go.”
Onanuga stressed that El-Rufai had been in public service since 1999 and should embrace a new phase of life.
He stated, “My advice for him as a brother, as a former governor, is to appeal to him that he should forget it if he’s not made a minister.”
Onanuga dismissed El-Rufai’s criticisms of the administration’s policies and governance approach as personal opinion that did not align with reality.
Onanuga explained, “This government inherited a lot of problems, and if you look at the figures and other things that we are witnessing, things are getting better. We are certainly not where we were in 2023.”
He pointed to improvements in economic indicators as proof of the administration’s progress.
Onanuga said, “This administration has done a lot to re-engineer the economy, and we are seeing positive figures. We’re seeing inflation coming down, our foreign reserves growing, and so many positive things happening.”
Deji Elumoye
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