Kaduna Group Backs Defence Minister Musa, Says El-Rufai’s Record Speaks for Itself
Kaduna — A political pressure group made up of Muslims and Christians in Kaduna State has thrown its weight behind the Honourable Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa, over remarks he made about the administration of former Governor Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai during a recent interview on Channels Television.
The Kaduna State Muslim-Christian Network for Good Governance, in a statement signed by its Chairman, Tahir Tanko, and Secretary, Steven Kefas, described criticism of General Musa’s comments as a reckless attempt to drag the minister’s name through the mud and accused his critics of selective amnesia and ethno-religious rhetoric.
The group said it stood as a living witness to what it called the divisive and arbitrary rule of El-Rufai between 2015 and 2023, citing the sacking of thousands of state workers and traditional rulers without due process, the killing of Shiites during his tenure, the handling of insecurity in the state, the demolition of markets and homes without compensation, and the arrest and incarceration of Christian and Muslim leaders who spoke out against his policies.
The statement also referenced a widely circulated video in which El-Rufai is said to have claimed he laid the foundation for the marginalisation of a section of the state, and to have urged Islamic and political leaders to sustain that agenda for at least twenty years until, in his words, its victims accepted their fate. Middle Belt Times has not independently verified the video or its content and is relying on the group’s characterisation of it.
According to the group, General Musa’s remarks were an accurate reflection of what residents experienced in Kaduna during those years, and it challenged anyone disputing that account to produce facts rather than hide behind ethnic or religious cover to defend El-Rufai or attack the minister.
The statement pushed back against attempts to frame General Musa’s comments as limited to Southern Kaduna alone, insisting that when the minister said El-Rufai deliberately planned the killing of our people, he was speaking of the entire Kaduna populace affected by the former governor’s policies, actions, or failures in managing a diverse state.
The group expressed total support for General Musa and said it was proud that a public figure of his standing had echoed a conversation it said had long been ongoing at state, national and international levels. It called on Kaduna citizens to close ranks with the present state government in its effort to restore unity, inclusiveness and fairness in governance.
The statement was also signed by members Yakubu Adamu, Joyce Michael, Kevin Bahago and Zariyi Yusuf, and Publicity Secretary Adamu Abdullahi.
Nasir El-Rufai and his aides are yet to respond publicly to the group’s latest statement. What is not in dispute is that the debate over his eight years in charge of Kaduna State is far from settled, and General Musa’s intervention has ensured it will not go away quietly.