Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s defection has been rejected by a young alliance within Nigeria’s Social Democratic Party (SDP), claiming that his “history is littered with anti-democratic tendencies and disregard for inclusivity.”
El-Rufai formally joined the SDP earlier this week after meeting with opposition leaders and condemning the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
But other party members, especially those in the SDP Youths and Supporters Coalition, are furious about his action.
Comrade Abdulsamad Bello, the group’s president, said in a statement released on Friday that El-Rufai’s “anti-democratic record” during his time as governor made him “unfit and morally unqualified” to be a member of the SDP.
“We reject El-Rufai’s entrance into our party in its entirety. He has come not as a reformer but as an undertaker, seeking to bury the SDP before it even has the chance to grow,” Bello said.
The coalition also criticized the party’s leadership for what it described as a “clandestine deal” that allowed El-Rufai’s defection, warning that his presence could destabilise the party.
“El-Rufai has never believed in democracy. His history of suppressing opposition voices, sidelining party members, and enforcing his will through coercion is well known,” Bello added.
“It is shocking that the leadership of our party would allow itself to be infiltrated by someone whose tenure in office was marked by impunity, authoritarianism, and disregard for democratic values.”
Tensions have already arisen as a result of the former governor joining the party. His followers demonstrated at the SDP national offices in Abuja on Wednesday, demanding that Olu Agunloye, the party’s national secretary, quit.
The young coalition claims that this demonstrates El-Rufai’s ambition to take over the party’s leadership.
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“Barely days after joining our party, El-Rufai is already pushing for a leadership change. He is demanding that Olu Agunloye resigns, even when the party has its own internal mechanisms for handling such matters. This is a clear sign of his desperation to control the SDP and mould it in his own image,” the statement added.
The group accused El-Rufai of using the SDP as a platform for his personal political ambitions, particularly in light of his recent criticisms of President Bola Tinubu and the APC.
“El-Rufai’s resignation from the APC and his calculated entry into the SDP is nothing but a desperate attempt to reinvent himself politically,” Bello added.
“The same man who once insulted opposition leaders and dismissed them as irrelevant is now seeking refuge in their midst. His hypocrisy knows no bounds.”
