Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has alleged that there are plans by the current administration to arrest, detain, and torture him in a facility under the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA). He claims to have been aware of these rumors since July 2024, following a report by the Kaduna State House of Assembly that indicted him for fraud.
El-Rufai has stated that he has received threats conveyed through friends, family, and political associates, aiming to force him into self-imposed exile. However, he has firmly dismissed the idea of leaving Nigeria, asserting, “They want me to go on self-imposed exile. I will not. Silence is no longer golden. Inaction has never been an option.”
He also referenced past experiences of arrest and detention, emphasizing that such political intimidation is not new to him. El-Rufai announced his intention to return to Nigeria before February 20, 2025, ahead of the scheduled launch of former President Ibrahim Babangida’s memoirs.
His statement reads in parts:
“I have now put all my previous academic and language-learning plans on hold and will spend more time in Nigeria than ever before. Silence is no longer golden. Inaction has never been an option.
The arrest, detention and torture of perceived political enemies are nothing new in human affairs. I have been arrested and detained thrice in the past for expressing my views of previous governments.
There is always a morning after the arrest or detention or torture, and political life continues. As for death, it when Allah destines it, and it is ultimate the date of every human.
