The lawmaker representing Kaduna North Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Bello El-Rufai, in an enlightening conversation with Seun Okinbaloye on Saturday, shared insights into the sentiments of his father, the former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, regarding his recent ministerial nomination by President Bola Tinubu.
According to Bello, his father had no initial desire for a ministerial position and viewed the Senate’s rejection of his nomination as a loss of an effective administrator for Nigeria.
Bello disclosed that it required significant persuasion from him and other family members to convince Nasir El-Rufai to accept the ministerial nomination offered by President Tinubu.
This revelation came to light following the Senate’s decision in August to confirm only 45 out of the 48 ministerial nominees presented by the President, excluding El-Rufai, Stella Okotete from Delta, and Sani Danladi from Taraba.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio stated that the three unconfirmed nominees would undergo further security checks, advising those not confirmed to seek redress with the President.
This decision has sparked discussions on the criteria for ministerial appointments and the implications of the Senate’s rejections on the administration’s ability to assemble a competent team.
Expressing his disappointment, Bello El-Rufai remarked on the setback his father’s rejection represented, not only for their family but for the country at large.
He emphasized the potential contributions Nasir El-Rufai could have made to the nation, leveraging his vast experience and administrative prowess.
He said, “I was in the National Assembly when my father’s nomination was rejected. It was very disappointing and still is. Myself, the Governor of Kaduna State, Uba Sani, and one of my father’s commissioners, Mr Hafiz Bayero, played a key role in convincing my father to work with this current government.
“He (Nasir) didn’t want it. It’s hard for Nigerians to believe it because they feel it is everyone in Nigeria who wants to be a minister.
“To be fair to him, he didn’t want the job. We convinced him that, with the antecedents of Asiwaju, he would create an excellent team as he did in Lagos.
“The President wanted to work with him. It was clear when he came to Kaduna. We also had an idea of what his portfolio would be. It was meant to be power and gas. He insisted to the President in private that Nigeria would not sort its electricity issue if gas was not put under the other components of power.
“The irony is that nothing has been rougher than the lack of power in the last two weeks. I’m disappointed because Nigeria lost an effective administrator in my father, one who is willing to make difficult decisions to solve a problem.”
Bello, further said many Nigerians do not really know his father.
He said, “My father is a very simple person who’s been stereotyped a lot. I got a video of him where people say this or that about him without even knowing him.
“My father does not go out of his way to change what people think about him. He doesn’t really care.
“There’s a perception that he’s anti-Christian. But, the closest person to him since we (children) were four years old was a man from Cross River State, Peter Jones.
“Religion is personal to us. As minister of the Federal Capital Territory, he demolished mosques. The imam said he hated Islam. He demolished churches and the Christians said he hated Christians. Maybe, it is the wrong imams and pastors who have issues, not him.”
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The Kaduna lawmaker added that his father was highly flawed in many ways.