El-Rufai demolished 2,000 homes in Abuja despite court orders — Fani-Kayode

2026-03-08 - 05:26

Editor’s note: This article was originally titled More questions for Nasir El-Rufai. By Chief Femi Fani-Kayode In my last contribution titled, ‘Nasir El Rufai as a Threat to National Security’, I asked a number of questions about the actions, utterances and public statements of my old friend, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, for which I am still waiting for answers. The last thing I heard about him is that he is still in detention and that he suffered a nose-bleed whilst there after one week and for this he has my sympathies. I hope he gets out soon so that he can respond to me directly and take care of his nose What I forgot to mention in that piece was the large number of orphanages he knocked down in Abuja when he was Minister of FCT and the large number of orphans that he made homeless. Outside of that he demolished 2,000 homes and buildings in Abuja and 12,000 shanties on its outskirts in which the poor had taken refuge often against court orders and without compensation! I also forgot to mention the fact that he knocked down many orphanages in Kaduna when he was governor and that one of the last things he did whilst in office, which he ruthlessly, chillingly and cold-bloodedly, carried out the day before handing over power to Governor Uba Sani, was knock down an orphanage at Fadama Badan Dodo in Zaria. The worst aspect of this was the fact that it took place at 1.00a.m., and without a court order! Details Details of other demolition activities that he ordered in the days leading up to his exit as Governor on May 29, 2023 were as follows: Gbagyi Villa Demolition: Roughly 72 hours before leaving office, the Kaduna State Urban Planning and Development Authority (KASUPDA) demolished numerous houses in the Gbagyi Villa community in Kaduna. Residents claimed that these demolitions occurred despite existing court orders for him not to proceed and that many of the affected buildings were legitimate residences. Shi’ite Buildings: On Monday, May 22, 2023—about a week before leaving office—KASUPDA demolished several structures belonging to the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), including schools, a hospital and private residences, in various areas, including Kawo, Rigasa and Tudun Wada. Prior to these actions, El-Rufai had vowed to continue “demolishing structures” until his “last day in office”. While specific reports from May 2023 focused on the destruction of houses, schools and a hospital in Gbagyi Villa and Shi’ite-affiliated areas, some reports have mentioned that the affected sites included structures and orphanages where children resided, leading to allegations of destroying homes and communities. The demolitions were described by critics and affected residents as “vindictive”. Even the homes and habitats of orphans were not spared from demolition and destruction! Like the troublers of the world that take pleasure in bombing and slaughtering women and children without regret or remorse, his bowels of compassion ran dry, he lost his sense of decency and humanity, he forswore the milk of human kindness and he offered no mercy to the women, the children, the elderly or the poor. His pleasure was to break their hearts, shatter their dreams and aspirations and bring tears to their eyes, pain to their spirits and sorrow to their souls. His joy was to deprive them of not just where they had lived but also all that they had. Such callousness is unspeakable. Yet sadly it does not stop there. I also forgot to mention the fact that his administration ruthlessly persecuted the followers of the late Sheik Dahiru Bauchi in Kaduna, raided their homes, desecrated their properties and places of worship which led the Sheik to express his displeasure against him by pronouncing a curse on him. And others cursed him too. For example the women of Kafanchan in Southern Kaduna went on a march, stripped themselves naked and cursed him at a roundabout in broad daylight in the middle of the town as a consequence of his wickedness towards their community. I doubt that any governor in the history of our nation has attracted as many curses from his own people as Nasir El Rufai. Pilgrimages banned I also forgot to mention the fact that he banned state-sponsored pilgrimages for Muslims who were going to Mecca and Christians who were going to Jerusalem which was, in my view, bad enough. What made it worse was the fact that he surreptitiously lifted the one on Muslims and strictly enforced the one on Christians. In other words he adopted a selective approach. Consequently the first time that Christians of Kaduna State were permitted to go on state-sponsored pilgrimages in the last 11 years was when Governor Uba Sani formally lifted the ban in February 2026! I also forgot to mention the fact that he banned night vigils for Christians when he was governor of Kaduna and that he directed pastors to submit the script of their sermons before they were allowed to preach. I also forgot to mention the fact that thousands of petitions from the Shia Muslims, the Tijaniya Muslims and the Christians of Kaduna whose rights were violated, whose women and children were killed and who were viciously and violently persecuted under his watch as governor, were presented to the DSS when he was nominated as a Minister by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. These petitions were so alarming that they could not be ignored and that is why his nomination as Minister was rejected by the Senate. Permit me to add that contrary to popular opinion, his nomination was NOT rejected as a consequence of the implementation of some far-fetched and illusionary conspiracy supposedly woven against him by the National Security Advisor, the governor of Kaduna State, the Vice President and the President which is the baseless narrative that he and his supporters are so fond of peddling to the public. Only the naive and the gullible would believe such a fairy tale because if President Tinubu did not want him to be a Minister he would not have been nominated in the first place. I also forgot to mention the fact that even though his successor in office, Governor Uba Sani, not only contributed millions of dollars of his own personal money to his legal fund between 2009 and 2014 when the EFCC prosecuted him but also stood by him through thick and thin, he repaid his good by attempting to undermine and discredit his government and destroy his future and career. Permit me to add the following:Before he left office he told Uba Sani that he must ensure that once his tenure as governor begins, he (Sani) must “right all the wrongs” that he (El Rufai) had committed as governor and that he had no intention of interfering in the affairs of the state once he was out. He even said that he would hardly come to Kaduna and that if he did so he would not go anywhere near Government House. Sadly he lied. He did not honor his word and neither did he take kindly to Sani righting his wrongs which proved to be legion. His reaction to his successor in office’s efforts to right those wrongs was unrelenting and unrestrained. He turned on him with a vengeance that is rarely seen in politics anywhere in the world. This was best reflected not just by his malicious and malevolent actions but also by his words when he told all those that cared to listen that his sole reason and purpose for returning to active politics was to ensure that he destroys the career, future and life of Uba Sani. I also forgot to mention the fact that even though the Minister of Environment, Alhaji Balarabe Abbas Lawal, who was his Chief of Staff when he was Minister of FCT and the Secretary to the State Government of Kaduna State when he was governor, sold his only house in Abuja and used the proceeds to help pay his lawyers when he was facing prosecution by the EFCC between 2009 and 2014, he repaid his commitment and dedication by not only attempting to block his nomination as a Minister (after he himself had been rejected by the Senate) but also to discredit the government that he serves. Permit me to add the fact that not only did Balarabe serve him in these two capacities over the years and not only were they colleagues at school during their childhood but also that the latter attended every single court sitting as a mark of solidarity when he (Nasir) was being prosecuted by the EFCC. All that for his former boss and yet the latter did all he could to abort his nomination and stop him from becoming a Minister. I also forgot to mention that he displayed hatred for Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State and that he attempted to humiliate him simply because he could not intimidate, manipulate, control or successfully threaten him when he was the Interim National Chairman of our great party and because he opened the door to many notable erstwhile opposition leaders to join us. Alleged phone-tapping There is so much more and I could go on but permit me to get to the meat of the matter and address the purpose of this additional contribution. Despite the gravity of the matters raised in my earlier essay and the importance of the additional points that I have added today, this contribution raises an even more disturbing issue which gives many even greater concern. Permit me to begin with a rhetorical question. Has it occurred to anyone that those tapping phones for Nasir El Rufai may be operatives or assets of a foreign intelligence agency or terrorist elements from outside Nigeria? I sincerely hope that I am wrong but until he either confesses to us that he was lying when he said he and his associates bugged the NSA’s phone or he tells us who those that actually bugged that phone were, we will not know. What makes the matter even more serious is the fact that it was reported in the media that the ICPC alleged that they recovered phone-tapping equipment and other sensitive security documents in his house when they conducted a search. The El-Rufai family issued a formal statement claiming that this is false but whichever way you look at it this new development is disturbing and takes the matter to an entirely different level. The stakes are high and the drama is unfolding by the day. Yet the most frightening aspect of this issue is the allegation made by El Rufai that the NSA has imported a large quantity of a lethal poison known as thalium sulphate into our shores which is banned in many countries in the world, which has been used for assassination purposes in some nations in the past and which is lethal to humans and animals even in small doses. Worse of all it is a colourless and odourless substance which cannot be detected when released. It is the perfect killing machine. I have no doubt that the NSA has NOT imported this substance and this begs the following question: Is it possible that it is actually El Rufai’s associates that have secretly smuggled in that lethal poison and that they are planning to execute what is known as a ‘false flag’ operation in our country in which they will use it to eliminate large numbers of our people and then blame it on security agencies and Federal Government? Is that why the letter was purposely and strategically leaked to the public? Were those behind the smuggling in of the poison and the leaking of the letter putting us on notice, albeit falsely, that the government has imported this chemical weapon and that when ‘they’ (meaning the conspirators and terrorists) unleash it with devastating consequences on our people the public will automatically assume it was the Federal Government and blame the Tinubu administration for it? Is that the evil hand and malevolent card they are attempting to play or are they planning to use the poison to simply target and kill government officials, public figures, members of the opposition or even to sell or donate to any or all of the five terrorist organisations that are waging war against our Armed Forces and people? This may all sound far-fetched to the uninformed, the naive and the shallow but history is replete with the execution and implementation of such ‘false flag’ and ‘black ops’ covert operations and any experienced and exposed intelligence officer will confirm this. These are the sort of sordid things specialised sections of some foreign intelligence agencies do in order to destabilise and destroy other countries and ultimately effect regime change through unconstitutional means. They covertly and clandestinely create chaos, carnage and confusion, incite the people against the government, fund and organise massive demonstrations and then move in for the kill. And they do this in collaboration and collusion with their local co-conspirators, collaborators and assets one of whom they will then put in power who will operate as their puppet, stooge and front. Outside of that, if they don’t get their way, they resort to a campaign of mass murder, genocide and ethnic cleansing, target innocent and defenceless women and children and flatten entire communities and nations with cluster bombs. Agenda I sincerely hope I am wrong but these are the sort of things that people like those I suspect are the associates of El Rufai that have a hidden agenda and that are desperate for and obsessed with power often do. History proves that. To be clear I am not suggesting that El Rufai himself may be inclined to do this but there is a distinct possibility that those that he may be associated with may have that inclination or disposition and may even harbour such evil plans without his knowledge. Terrorists, non-state actors with evil intentions and foreign intelligence agencies usually only give information to their associates on a need to know basis and they may just be using Nasir as an unsuspecting patsy. He may well be swimming in a sea of shark-infested waters without knowing it. If that proves to be the case he has my sympathies and I hope he co- operates fully with the security agencies so that he can exonerate himself. I would advise him to hold nothing back if he has any useful information or else he may sink with them. Again if local actors and opposition figures, like a former Attorney General and Minister of Justice who is presently in the custody of the DSS as a consequence of allegations of terrorism-funding, or the former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources who has been declared wanted by the Defence Intelligence Agency to explain his alleged role in the funding of a recent coup plot, are in any way involved he should come clear to security agencies. I have not made any categorical accusations or allegations here but I am simply thinking aloud and suggesting that we need to get answers to these questions and we need to consider all the points raised. I ask these questions not to create panic or frighten anyone but only because these are not just my legitimate concerns but the legitimate concerns of millions of other patriotic Nigerians who love this country dearly and who want nothing but peace and security and for our people to thrive and flourish. If a well-educated, experienced and enlightened former public office holder like Nasir El-Rufai can say the things he said openly on national television before millions of viewers and if he can write such letters attempting to implicate the Office of the NSA in the importation of lethal substances which are used to kill people then he certainly has a lot of explaining to do and many questions to answer. The matter has now gone way beyond mere politics or allegations of corruption and is now a MAJOR security issue. If you want to know what poisonous gas and chemical weapons can do to civilian populations when in the hands of a mentally-deranged meglomaniac who craves and is obsessed with grabbing power at any cost, please find out what happened to the people of Halabja, Iraq in 1988 and the Shia Muslims of Iraq in 1991 when Saddam Hussein used it on them. The consequences were devastating. Again if you want to know what such poisons can do to individuals that have been targeted for death, often without leaving any trace of foul play, find out what happened to the Russian dissident Alexei Navalny, the Ukranian President Viktor Yuschenko (though he survived it), the leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), Wadie Haddad, a leader of Hamas, Khaled Mashaal (though he survived it), and a senior official of Hamas, Mahmoud Al-Mabhouh. Is this the sort of evil that Nasir El Rufai’s associates have in store for some of our leaders? Are they planning to carry out such acts and then attempt to blame it on the state and our NSA? I am only asking and there is no harm or crime in that given the fact that he now keeps the company of those that are skilled in espionage and that have the skill, know-how and wherewithal to bug the National Security Advisors’ phone and share details of his supposed conversations. Is this why he and those that are working with him take every opportunity to insult, undermine, disgrace and humiliate our President and Vice President in the international media and on social media? Has his unquenchable envy for Senator Kashim Shettima, simply because he was elected as our nation’s Vice President (a position that Nasir himself coveted and lobbied for) and hatred for Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, simply because he was appointed as the NSA whilst he (Nasir) himself was rejected as a Minister, driven him to a point of such bitterness and madness that he is now associating with and relying on information from subversive elements and enemies of the state? Is Nasir, a man that I once had so much affection and respect for, now a friend and associate of phone hackers and has he become a threat to national security? Is his sole objective to pull down our government through any means possible and throw our nation into chaos and turmoil? I have every confidence that the Nigerian Intelligence Agency (NIA), the Office of the National Security Advisor (ONSA), the Department of State Security (DSS), the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) will get to the bottom of this and find out all they need to know about who El Rufai’s associates really are and what is really going on. They are very good at what they do and they will unravel the knot. Permit me to end this contribution with the words and counsel of @Ayekooto who posted the following words on X. He wrote, “This man (Nasir El Rufai) woke up in his house one morning. Brushed his teeth, had his bath and wore a fine babariga, entered straight into his waiting car and was driven to a live AriseTv programme. It was a conducive environment, no stress, no force, no intimidation. And he just looked at the cameras and said ’we listen to telephone conversations of National Security Adviser. We know someone who tapped it. Yes, it is illegal but we are doing it...’ Please my dear friends, don’t joke with curses whether you’re right or wrong. Use this Lent and Ramadan season to ask God for forgiveness of all sins you committed but more importantly, every curse placed on you that you’re treating trivially, ask God for cancellation especially if those curses are from Kaduna people, pray fervently against it!” I concur. •Chief David Oluwafemi Adewunmi Abdulateef Fani-Kayode, the author of this essay, is a former Minister of Aviation, a former Minister of Culture and Tourism, a former Senior Special Assistant to President Olusegun Obasanjo on Public Affairs, an Ambassador-Designate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Sadaukin Shinkafi, the Wakilin Doka Potiskum, the Otunba of Joga Orile, the Aare Ajagunla of Otun Ekiti and a Legal Practitioner.