NASS Didn’t Reject Me, Tinubu Did – El-Rufai

Former governor of Kaduna State and minister of Abuja Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, during the Olusegun Obasanjo's administration, Nasir El-Rufai, says he was not rejected by the National Assembly as a ministerial nominee, noting that instead, it was President Bola Tinubu, that instead requested the Assembly that he should not be cleared.
The Senate had in 2023, withheld El- Rufai's the confirmation of El-Rufai as a ministerial nominee, citing security reports from the Department of State Services, DSS,  for the action.
However,  speaking on Monday during an interview on Arise Television, El-Rufai said President Bola Tinubu simply “changed his mind on the nomination.
“After serving for eight years as governor of Kaduna state, I had my plans. The President publicly appealed to me put my plans on hold and through two months of negotiations, we finally agreed that he would nominate me as minister and there were certain conditions I attached to that. I think along the line, either the president changed his mind or something else" happened.
“I think along the line, either the President changed his mind or something else. Please don’t believe the story that the National Assembly rejected me.