Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State said yesterday that some elements in the Presidency were working assiduously to ensure the failure of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in ths month’s presidential elections.
also said the same forces were responsible for the current crisis created by the petrol subsidy, which is making the country waste over N6 trillion annually.
But the Federal Government in a swift reaction yesterday, said it is not aware of any element working against the ruling party, insisting that President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to ensuring that the forthcoming elections are free, fair and credible and wil not favour any presidential candidate.
But speaking in an interview on Channels Television’s breakfast programme, Sunrise Daily, Governor el-Rufai said most of those working against APC’s chances in the presidential election are not even members of the party
elements are hiding behind the President’s desire to do what he thinks is right. I will give two examples: this petroleum subsidy, which is costing the country trillions of naira, was something that we all agreed would be removed.
“In fact, I had a discussion with the President and showed him why it had to go, because how can you have a capital budget of N200 billion for federal roads and then spend N2 trillion on petroleum subsidy?
“This was a conversation I had with the President in 2021 when the subsidy thing started rising. He was convinced. We left. It changed. Everyone in the government agreed, and it changed.
Don’t blame CBN gov on Naira re-design’
“The second example I will give is this currency redesign. You have to understand the President. People are blaming the governor of the Central Bank for the currency redesign, but No.
You have to go back and look at the first outing of Buhari as military head of state. He did this; the Buhari-Idiagbon regime changed our currency and did it in secrecy, with a view to catching those that are stashing away illicit funds.
“It is a very good intention. The President has his right but doing it at this time within the allotted time does not make any political or economic sense.”
Denies knowledge of presidency official working against APC
Replying the Kaduna governor yesterday, the Federal Government denied knowledge of Presidency officials working against the APC in the forthcoming presidential election, insisting that President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to ensuring that the forthcoming elections in the country are free, fair and credible and will not favour any presidential candidate.
The government also dismissed Transparency International’s, TI, report that placed Nigeria on 150 on the Corruption Perception Index ranking from the previous 154 out of 180 countries
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, while fielding questions from State House correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting on the claims by Governor el-Rufai, maintained that President Buhari, being the main occupant of the presidential villa, had stressed severally that he wanted his administration to deliver a credible exercise.
The Minister said if there are elements within the seat of power working against the victory of the ruling party, it had not been brought officially to his notice.
He said: “On a more serious note, one thing I can assure you is that no matter what, this administration is focused, determined to ensure free and fair elections
But I think with this administration, the most important person is Mr President, and I think he has shown by words and deeds that he is committed to a free, fair and credible election. And fair, free, credible elections actually mean not favouring anybody or disadvantaging anybody.
“Everywhere he goes, he makes that very clear, even as recently as last Friday when he was in Daura (Katsina State), he said the same thing. If there’s anybody working against a candidate, we don’t know officially.
