The Chronicles of El-Rufai

Ambition can be a good or bad thing depending on the situation at hand. For former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, things are looking hazy. The recent reports about him suggest that he is not happy with the way things played out with respect to the role assigned to him in the new government. But is that enough reason to miss out on his son’s wedding?

Saturday, August 12, 2023, was the wedding of Bello El-Rufai, the eldest son of the former Kaduna State governor. Bello tied the marital knot with his beloved, Aisha Habibu Shuaibu. And while the ceremony was held in Abuja among relatives and friends, the father of the groom was noticeably absent.

According to reports, it was El-Rufai’s successor to the Kaduna State governorship seat, Uba Sani, that stood in as Bello’s father. And while speculations abound as to why El-Rufai was absent, some self-proclaimed social analysts are quick to point out that the former Kaduna State governor is still disgruntled with the issues of state and country.

It is not news that El-Rufai stood out during the recent verification of the ministerial nominees in the House of Senate. Readers would recall that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu nominated him to take up a ministerial position in the new government. However, El-Rufai did not show up for the confirmation exercise.

According to reports, El-Rufai was not happy to be included in the ministerial list. Allegedly, he considers his contributions to Tinubu’s emergence as necessitating a higher political status, one superior to the suggested ministerial appointment. Analysts have tied this allegation to a statement once made by El-Rufai in which he pointed out that being a minister is essentially meaningless since he has already served the country in that capacity.

Thus, considering his absence at his son’s wedding, El-Rufai’s alleged issue with the appointments of Mister President might be responsible. It could also be that El-Rufai was simply too busy to attend the wedding. Whichever is true, the picture that folks are getting from his absence at the wedding does not paint El-Rufai in a positive light.