Bashir Sa'idu, a former Chief of Staff to ex-Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, has openly disputed the narrative that El-Rufai built the political careers of those who later broke with him, insisting instead that he and his associates were the reason the former governor succeeded.
Speaking during an interview with Radio France Internationale (RFI), as reported by Premium Times, Sa'idu pushed back against suggestions that his group owed their political standing to El-Rufai.
Sa'idu Claims Credit for El-Rufai's Electoral Victories
Sa'idu argued that the political networks he and his allies put in place were central to El-Rufai's victories in both the 2015 and 2019 governorship elections in Kaduna State.
"El-Rufai is not a politician. When he came to Kaduna in 2014 to contest the governorship, he approached us. We had our political structures, and Suleiman Hunkuyi and I worked tirelessly to ensure his victory in that election," Sa'idu said. "We were the reason he succeeded."
He maintained that the structures built by his group were instrumental in delivering the governorship for El-Rufai, countering claims that the former governor had created the political careers of his allies.
ADC Governorship Primary Deepens Rift
The falling-out between El-Rufai and his former allies sharpened after the African Democratic Congress (ADC) governorship primary in Kaduna State. Isah Ashiru won the contest with 86,113 votes, while Ja'afaru Sani, a former commissioner for education under El-Rufai, finished second with 29,580 votes.
Sani rejected the result, citing alleged irregularities. His camp, including Sa'idu, believed El-Rufai had backed Ashiru and used his influence to tilt the process against them.
In the RFI interview, Sa'idu argued that Sani deserved the ticket and that the outcome showed El-Rufai was no longer willing to accommodate those who had stood by him. He also alleged that the former governor had surrounded himself with younger associates, pushing aside those who helped him rise to power.
Sa'idu Accuses El-Rufai of Family Control
Sa'idu further claimed that his political group, Kaduna De-Initiatives, played a key role in building the ADC's structures across the state, but left once they grew dissatisfied with how the party was being run.
"We cannot allow his family to appoint a candidate for us," Sa'idu said.
"We built ADC with our strength, sweat and blood, but unfortunately, a few individuals who later joined the party hijacked it," he said. "We discovered that the party was being teleguided by a family, a situation which we found unacceptable."
Sa'idu and Sani have since returned to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 general elections, joining other former El-Rufai allies who walked away from the ADC over similar grievances.
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Muhammad Sa'idu, a former Kaduna State Commissioner for Finance, defected from the ADC to the APC alongside thousands of supporters in Zaria. He claimed his group built the ADC's structure from ward to state level before being allegedly forced out by individuals who hijacked the party.
Kaduna Governor Uba Sani welcomed the defectors and announced the APC had raised its 2027 vote target in the state from two million to three million.
