(This is a story of Nigeria, told from the inside. After a...)
This is a story of Nigeria, told from the inside. After a successful career in the private sector, Nasir El-Rufai rose to the top ranks of Nigeria's political hierarchy, serving first as the privatization czar at the Bureau for Public Enterprises and then as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja under former President Olesegun Obasanjo. In this tell-all memoir, El-Rufai reflects on a life in public service to Nigeria, the enormous challenges faced by the country, and what can be done while calling on a new generation of leaders to take the country back from the brink of destruction.
The Nigerian politician Mallam Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai is the incumbent Governor of Kaduna State and former Director General of The Bureau of Public Enterprises, the head privatization agency in Nigeria and also the former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
Background
Nasir Ahmed el-Rufai was born on February 16, 1960 in Daudawa of Faskari Local Government Area in Katsina State. His father who lived on a pension of three pounds a month died while the young Nasir was barely 8. He was sponsored throughout his schooling days by an uncle in Kaduna, and as a result grew up in the influential Northern state of Nigeria.
Education
el-Rufai attended the prestigious Barewa College, where he graduated at the top of the class, winning the coveted "Barewa Old Boys' Association Academic Achievement" Trophy in 1976. Incidentally, in Barewa College, the former President of Nigeria,Umaru Yar'Adua was the House Captain of Mallam Smith House which was Nasir's dormitory as a junior. He went off to Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, earning a Bachelor in Quantity Surveying degree with First Class Honors. He also attended post-graduate programs at Harvard Business School and Georgetown University. Since leaving public service, Nasir has completed an LL.B degree from the University of London, graduating in August 2008 with Second Class Honors, Upper Division, and a Master's Degree in Public Administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University in June 2009. He also received the Kennedy School Certificate in Public Policy and Management having spent 11 months as an Edward A. Mason Fellow in Public Policy and Management from July 2008 to June 2009.
Nasir El-Rufai set up his own consulting firm in 1982 and handled mainly building and civil engineering projects in Nigeria. He later became the Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises and the Secretary of the National Council of Privatization from November 1999 to July 2003.
He was the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory from 2003 to 2007. EL-Rufai has had various nicknames throughout his period in politics and even before that, he's known as Giant by those close to him, a reference to his small size. He is also known as the Privatization Czar, and more recently as Mr. Demolition. During the last days of the Obasanjo administration, the former EFCC Chairman described El-Rufai as the "de facto No. 2 official", tagging him with the role of a Vice-President, especially after the fall-out between the former President and his Vice-President. It is believed that Obasanjo's trust and confidence in El-Rufai angered a vast number of the political elite within the country. Indeed, it was widely believed that the former President was considering blessing EL-Rufai as his successor. However, it was believed the vast political powers against him were too much, probably as a result of the fear of what may happen to them once he was in power.
The administration of the President, Umaru Yar'adua appointed El-Rufai to the National Energy Council in September 2007, due to the belief that he could contribute positively to the under-achieving power sector of the country.
Nasir resigned the appointment in June 2008, and on 30 April and 7 May 2008, El-Rufai appeared before the Nigerian's Senate Committee on Federal Capital Territory to explain some exposed and corrupt actions of his administration. He attempted to justify his actions and stoutly rejected cynics views on the allegation that he allocated plots of land to his friends, brother and cronies, and it was clear that many of the Senators had lost properties during the restoration of Abuja by El-Rufai and were therefore just out to get their pound of flesh. To a vast amount of Nigerians, El-Rufai is simply being witched-hunted for stepping on the toes of the corrupt political elite within the country. This is largely because, unlike a number of aides to the former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Nasir El-Rufai has still not been accused of money laundering or any bribery scandal.
The Yar'Adua Administration continued to investigate El-Rufai, and his compatriot Nuhu Ribadu, in order to smear them and satisfy the political elite braying for their blood. Due to President Yaradua's chronic ill health coupled with his absence from Nigeria for many weeks without Nigerians hearing a word from him or knowing what is really wrong with him speculations are that a power struggle has begun in Nigeria with President Obasanjo and his loyalists pushing for Yaradua to step down and hand over power to his Vice President, Goodluck Jonathan. President Yaradua's loyalists resisted this suggestion vehemently and it was reported that part of their response to this challenge was to implement yet another strategy to try to silence and intimidate President Obasanjo and his key loyalists like Nasir El-Rufai (former Minister of FCT), Femi Fani-Kayode (former Minister of Aviation), Nuhu Ribadu (former Chairman of the EFCC), Lawal Batagarawa (former Minister of Defence), Nenadi Usman (former Minister of Finance) and Andy Uba (former Special Assistant to President Obasanjo) by roping them into and implicating them in a phantom coup plot and with a view to eventually charging them and trying them for treason and encouraging military insurrection. This was the same method that was adopted by General Sani Abacha who had jailed Obasanjo on similar trumped up charges when he was in power. Obasanjo was released and pardoned a number of years later after Abacha died and after General Abdulsalami Abubakar took power.
(This is a story of Nigeria, told from the inside. After a...)
2013
Religion
He is considered as a controversial person when it comes to religion. el-Rufai passed religious bill in Kaduna State which is supposed to check religious activities but it is apparent that the bill is targeted as Christians. While the governor has come out to clarify that the bill is to safeguard against religious extremism, some critics especially christian clerics argue it is aimed at Christians.
Malam El-Rufai, appears to be one of the arrows aimed at making Christians very uncomfortable in Nigeria, by anti- Christian Forces of this country. In January 2013, the former FCT, Abuja Minister wanted to please his god fathers in politics, as a governor ship aspirant in Kaduna State, twitted an insult on the person of Jesus Christ, claiming Jesus had sex with Mary Magdalene. Christians reacted to his insensitive, irresponsible and offensive saying about Christ, and his attack on the sensibilities of Christians globally, which betrayed his lack of respect for our Lord Jesus Christ and obvious hatred for Christians.
Politics
His works speak for him in term of his political views. During his tenure as Minister of FCT, he oversaw the Federal Ministries of Commerce (twice) and Ministry of Interior. He also chaired several high-profile cabinet committees that led to the establishment of a mortgage system in Nigeria, National ID card system for Nigeria, Electric Power Supply Improvement and the sale of Federal Government real estate in Abuja.
Many people see Nasir El-Rufai as an incorruptible public servant who can get difficult jobs done.
Views
Quotations:
“My hope is that you people will reflect on some of the things we did in government that were right and many of the things that we did that were mistakes. I think that lessons are learnt when additional memories are protected when people learn from what works and what doesn’t work and personal mistakes and errors of leaders. That is how to build a nation; that is how future generations learn and this is why I wrote the book, I don’t think we should have the conspiracy of silence about how our government is being run, I think we should talk openly about it, celebrate what we did right and admit where we made mistakes and name names so that people will know that when you are in leadership position, history will judge you, that is what is my biggest motive here.”
Personality
Nasir el-Rufai is considered as an intelligent man with great ideas. He is a known crusader against corruption, having previously successfully exposed two senators that demanded bribes from him to ease his ministerial confirmation.
Quotes from others about the person
Alhaji Umar Farouk Kafanchan: “El-Rufai commended Sambo for his developmental strides when he was still in the PDP. Now that he has left for the APC, he has resorted to attacking the person of the Vice President just to remain relevant. He will never succeed in these antics.”
ACN leader, Bola Tinubu: “In as much as Nasir may not and cannot exonerate himself from all that happened, he has chosen a road less travelled by telling it all. One of yesterday’s men is coming clean.”
Professor Chidi Odinkalu: “El-Rufai is no more a political activist, but a statesman. He cares more about what happens in the country. The content of the book is not something that can be said by someone whose objective is to return to power.”
Alhaji Umar Farouk Kafanchan: “Let me tell you, El-Rufai cannot come out calling our party and the vice-president names because he was in the kitchen cabinet of Obasanjo, and instead of doing good things, he was busy fighting everyone, including the hands that fed him. He cannot abuse people just because he wants to be relevant.”
Connections
He has three wives, and several children
Spouse:
Ummi El-Rufai, Hadiza El-Rufai, Asia El–Rufai
offspring:
Yasmin El-Rufai, Hamza El-Rufai, Bilkisu El-Rufai, Ahmed El-Rufai, Mustapha El-Rufai