Members of the Middle Belt Forum (MBF), Kaduna Chapter, have urged the Federal Government to immediately arrest and prosecute the former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, and some coalition stakeholders of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for allegedly threatening the security of the country and promoting instability in the polity.

The officials of MBF, who addressed a press conference in Kaduna on Friday, stated that allowing El-Rufai and members of the coalition group to promote hate speech among citizens will not bode well for the democratic process and the country’s desired stability.

The Chairman, MBF Kaduna Chapter, retired Air Commodore John Bako Ajeye, said that “the former governor, El-Rufai and members of the ADC coalition should have been invited, detained and prosecuted over the comments and statements threatening the security of Kaduna State, and Nigeria long ago”.

He said that “their actions may plunge the country into more political upheavals, if not checked immediately. I am from a security background, and I am telling you today, as chairman of Middle Belt Forum, Kaduna State, that they have questions to answer. And the government need to take immediate action to save the state, and the country by extension, from further security threats”.

Additionally, retired Commodore Ajeye pointed out flaws in El-Rufai’s statements regarding Southern Kaduna, which is an integral part of the Middle Belt community.

He said, “For clarity, the Middle Belt of Nigeria comprises the ethnic nationalities of the 19 Northern States and the Federal Capital Territory who are not Hausa, Fulani, or Kanuri. Our forum exists to protect the interests and accurate representation of these communities”.

He explained that “today, we must counter this orchestrated campaign of falsehood and demographic gaslighting targeted at the good people of Southern Kaduna and the Middle Belt region”.

He noted that “the former governor’s interview was a masterclass in deception; a pathetic attempt to rewrite reality and diminish the undeniable political and demographic weight of Southern Kaduna”

“Let us be unequivocal in replacing El-Rufai’s Fiction with facts. His claim that Christians constitute ‘not even 25 per cent’ of Kaduna State is a fiction, a lie from the pit of hell. Verified data from independent and governmental sources presents a starkly different reality. Southern Kaduna refers to the socio-cultural and historical conglomeration of ethnic nationalities in Kaduna State that are not Hausa or Fulani. It is geographically contiguous, with Christianity as its dominant religion”, he added.

Ajaye stressed further, “It encompasses 12 Local Government Areas, with the eight LGAs of Kaduna South Senatorial Zone forming its core, plus Chikun, Kajuru, Kaduna South and Lere. This region spans approximately 26,000 square kilometres and is home to a projected population of 5.1 million people. This constitutes almost half of the state’s population today”.

“Kaduna State is not a Christian-minority bloc. It is, in fact, a near-balanced state. Southern Kaduna is also a historic hub of education, intellectualism, and civil service excellence, having produced legendary Nigerian pioneers such as Dr. Barau Dikko and Prof. Ishaya Audu. El-Rufai’s attempt to politically diminish Southern Kaduna is not just false; it is the height of ingratitude. The 2023 gubernatorial election, which his protégé, Senator Uba Sani, won by a razor-thin margin of just 10,806 votes, was decisively determined by the votes from Southern Kaduna, which boasts 43.7 per cent of the state’s registered voters”, he said.

He said, “For a man who benefitted from a similar coalition in 2015 to now turn around and label the same people as insignificant because they roundly rejected his toxic politics of division is a shocking display of arrogance.

Furthermore, his comparison of the peaceful, democratic Christian communities of Southern Kaduna to the proscribed Shiite movement is not only reckless but deeply bigoted. This dangerous analogy is designed solely to incite hatred and justify the systemic marginalisation and violence these communities have endured, particularly under his administration.

“We are not surprised by this vitriol. It is the bitter cry of a man facing a well-deserved political reckoning, the direct consequence of the policies he meted out on the people of Southern Kaduna. His administration was marked by deliberate balkanization of our traditional institutions. Unjust redrawing of electoral wards to disenfranchise our people. Wholesale abandonment of critical infrastructure projects. And a shocking, blatant disregard for the security of lives and property”, Ajaye stressed.

“He has forgotten that he was the first governor to admit on national television that he paid bandits. He has forgotten he was caught on video stating that the Muslim-Muslim ticket was deliberately chosen to ‘enthrone Islam.’ Now, he contradictorily claims it was merely to win an election. This is the height of dishonesty”, he noted.

He further stated, “We admonish Mallam Nasir El-Rufai to desist from spreading falsehood and poisoning the unity in our dear state. At his age, he should be seeking peace and making amends, not actively working to plunge future generations into conflict. Though his days in the political limelight are numbered, he seems tragically determined to leave the political space as its most disgraced and humiliated figure.”

He added. “We therefore call on all well-meaning Nigerians, the national media, and responsible civil society organisations to disregard his malicious fabrications and hold him to account for his words.”