I’m being forced to go on exile, El-Rufai cries out

Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has alleged that some political forces are attempting to force him into self-imposed exile through intimidation and threats of arrest.

El-Rufai said this in reaction to claims by a Twitter user that there were plans to arrest El-Rufai upon his return to Nigeria on “concocted allegations.”

El-Rufai, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), accused unnamed political figures of attempting to use the judicial system against him.

He said such threats were part of a larger plan to force him into self-imposed exile but noted that he has no intention of leaving the country.

“They freaked out when we challenged the legality of the premeditated defamation, and went to every length to compromise the judicial process, and this is continuing at the Court of Appeal,” El-Rufai disclosed on X on Tuesday.

“They have sent such similar messages of intimidation and threats through many of my friends, family and political associates because they want me to go on self-imposed exile. I will not.“

However, El-Rufai noted that he had put his “previous academic” and “language-learning plans” on hold to spend more time in Nigeria than ever before.

He noted that “Silence is no longer golden. Inaction has never been an option.

“The arrest, detention and torture of perceived political enemies are nothing new in human affairs. I have been arrested and detained thrice in the past for expressing my views of previous governments.”

El-Rufai also noted that he has been “arrested and detained thrice in the past for expressing my views of previous governments.”

The arrest, detention and torture of perceived political enemies are nothing new in human affairs, El-Rufai added.

He, however, disclosed that he plans to return to Nigeria for the upcoming launch of former President Ibrahim Babangida’s memoirs on February 20, 2025.

“There is always a morning after the arrest or detention or torture, and political life continues. As for death, it when Allah destines it, and it is ultimate the date of every human,” El-Rufai said.

“For the attention of the pathetic characters that don’t sleep well whenever I am in Nigeria, take notice that I intend to return in time for the launch of Pres IBB’s memoirs, in sha Allah, scheduled for 20th February.”