The Democratic Front (TDF) has accused former Kaduna State Governor Mallam Nasir el-Rufai of making spurious allegations against the federal government and the National Security Adviser, as part of a deliberate and calculated ploy to stir tension in the country.
In a statement signed by its Chairman, Mallam Danjuma Muhammad and Secretary, Chief Wale Adedayo, it urged the authorities to ensure that the law takes its course now that he has been charged in court.
“We consider El rufai’s behavior as rascally, uncouth, and irresponsible because his claims on the importation of Thallium Sulphate (a toxic compound capable of killing humans in small doses), by the Office of National Security Adviser is not only false, but also politically intended to mislead the public over his alleged diversion of N432 billion from the Treasury of Kaduna State Government.
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“It is morally wrong and irresponsible for a politically exposed individual like the former Kaduna Governor to come into the public space with such a weighty accusation without relevant documents and details to back up his claims.
“It is even more disheartening that he publicly admitted to being privy to the illegal and criminal tapping of the telephone number of the National Security Adviser, Malam Nuhu Ribadu, in a desperate bid to gain access to the NSA’s private conversations.
“This, in our view, is a criminal breach of national security. And an irresponsible act from a self-acclaimed law-abiding public figure.
“We are however glad to note that the Federal Government has swiftly instituted legal actions against Malam el Rufai over the matter.
“We are also amazed that el Rufai who served as Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory Minister and two-term Governor of Kaduna State, will exhibit such ignorance of due process on official correspondence, by failing to wait for a reply to the letter he sent to the NSA, over the alleged Importation of Thallium Sulphate, before he inundated the public space with unverified allegations that were clearly intended to spark anxiety, tension, and possible unrest in the country.
” We have every reason to believe that he sparked controversy around the alleged importation of Thallium Sulphate, to distract attention from the ongoing investigations into the N 432 billion he allegedly diverted and misappropriated when he was Governor of Kaduna State.
“It is also pertinent to recall that the Kaduna State House of Assembly, through its report to the EFCC in 2024, alleged that the sum of N432 billion was diverted through several channels, between 2015 and 2023, by former Governor el Rufai. The ruse about Thallium Sulphate importation is therefore a deliberate ploy to undermine EFCC’s investigation on the matter, and to give the exercise a wrong public connotation of political persecution of an opposition politician.”
The group added that it found El Rufai’s conduct unbecoming and unacceptable for the calibre of political leader he claims to be.
