According to remarks made during an interview on Sahara TV, African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore has discussed the political circumstances surrounding former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai and former Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman Nuhu Ribadu during the administration of former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
Sowore claimed that El-Rufai and Ribadu went into exile in the United States amid political tensions during that period. In his account, their departure was connected to disagreements involving Ribadu and prominent Nigerian political figures, including former Delta State Governor James Ibori and former Senate President Bukola Saraki.
The AAC presidential candidate suggested that the political atmosphere at the time contributed to the circumstances surrounding their departure from Nigeria. He linked the development to tensions within the political establishment during Yar’Adua’s presidency, particularly the controversy surrounding Ribadu’s activities as head of the EFCC.
Ribadu led the anti-corruption agency during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo and became associated with several high-profile investigations involving public officials. His tenure and subsequent removal from the EFCC leadership attracted considerable public attention and generated debate about the independence of anti-corruption institutions and the influence of political interests.
El-Rufai, who previously served as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory under Obasanjo, also became involved in political disputes during the transition to Yar’Adua’s administration. However, the circumstances and motivations surrounding the movements of both men should be distinguished from Sowore’s interpretation of those events.
In Sowore’s words: “El-Rufai was in exile in the US with Nuhu Ribadu. They were running away from Yar’Adua because Nuhu Ribadu had offended Ibori and Saraki, so they drove them out of town.”
Sowore’s comments revisit a politically sensitive period in Nigeria’s recent history, when disputes involving anti-corruption investigations, influential politicians and changes in government leadership attracted widespread attention. His account presents his interpretation of the events, while the specific claims about why the two men left Nigeria would require further verification through reliable historical records and statements from those involved.
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