…Says, “MBF not Hausa, Fulani, Kanuri ethnicity” – State Chair
…“Any party fielding El-Rufai in juicy position risks votes loss” National PRO
by Achadu Gabriel, Kaduna
Middle Belt Forum (MDF) of Nigeria has countered what it termed a recent incendiary as, “false and deliberately misleading comments” made by the former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, against Southern Kaduna, during his appearance on Channels Television’s “Politics Today.”
The Forum, in a joint press conference Friday, in Kaduna by the State Exco and a national body spokesman, argued that “El-Rufai’s claims that ‘Christians constitute not even 25% of Kaduna State’ is a fiction, a lie from the pit of hell,” alleging that “Verified data from independent and governmental sources presents a starkly different reality.”
MBF Kaduna State chairman, Air Commodore John Bako Ajeye (Rtd), who addressed the Press, said that El-Rufai’s statements concerning Southern Kaduna, which is an integral part of the Middle-Belt community absorbed into the Northwest geopolitical zone, represent a dangerous escalation in rhetoric and a direct assault on truth and demography.
The Forum stressed that it must counter the orchestrated campaign of falsehood and demographic gas-lighting targeted at the good people of Southern Kaduna and the Middle-Belt Region.
“For clarity, the Middle-Belt of Nigeria comprises the ethnic nationalities of the 19 Northern States and the Federal Capital Territory, who are not Hausa, Fulani, or Kanuri. Our forum exists to protect the interests and accurate representation of these communities.
“The former governor’s interview was a master-class in deception; a pathetic attempt to rewrite reality and diminish the undeniable political and demographic weight of Southern Kaduna.
“Let us be unequivocal in replacing El-Rufai’s Fiction with facts. His claim that Christians constitute “not even 25%” of Kaduna State is a fiction, a lie from the pit of hell. Verified data from independent and governmental sources presents a starkly different reality,” he said.
According to the chairman, “Southern Kaduna” refers to the socio-cultural and historical conglomeration of ethnic nationalities in Kaduna State that are not Hausa or Fulani. It is geographically contiguous, with Christianity as its dominant religion.”
The chairman also said that Southern Kaduna encompassed 12 Local Government Areas, with the 8 LGAs of Kaduna South Senatorial Zone forming its core, plus Chikun, Kajuru, Kaduna South and Lere.
“This region spans approximately 26,000 square kilometers and is home to a projected population of 5.1 million people. This constitutes almost half of the state’s population today.
“Kaduna State is not a Christian-minority bloc. It is, in fact, a near-balanced state. Southern Kaduna is also a historic hub of education, intellectualism, and civil service excellence, producing legendary Nigerian pioneers like Dr. Barau Dikko and Prof. Ishaya Audu.
“El-Rufai’s attempt to politically diminish Southern Kaduna is not just false; it is the height of ingratitude. The 2023 gubernatorial election, which his protégé, Senator Uba Sani, won by a razor-thin margin of just 10,806 votes, was decisively determined by the votes from Southern Kaduna, which boasts 43.7% of the state’s registered voters.
“For a man, who benefitted from a similar coalition in 2015, to now turn around and label the same people as ‘insignificant’ because they roundly rejected his toxic politics of division is a shocking display of arrogance,” he said.
“Furthermore, his comparison of the peaceful, democratic Christian communities of Southern Kaduna to the proscribed Shiite movement is not only reckless but deeply bigoted.
“This dangerous analogy is designed solely to incite hatred and justify the systemic marginalization and violence these communities have endured, particularly under his administration.
“We are not surprised by this vitriol. It is the bitter cry of a man facing a well-deserved political reckoning, the direct consequence of the wicked policies he meted out on the people of Southern Kaduna.
“His administration was marked by deliberate balkanization of our traditional institutions – unjust redrawing of electoral wards to disenfranchise our people; wholesale abandonment of critical infrastructure projects; and a shocking, blatant disregard for the security of lives and property.
“He has forgotten that he was the first governor to admit on national television that he paid bandits. He has forgotten he was caught on video stating that the Muslim-Muslim ticket was deliberately chosen to “enthrone Islam.” Now, he contradictorily claims it was merely to win an election. This is the height of dishonesty,” Forum stated.
“The Forum, therefore, admonishes El-Rufai to desist from spreading falsehood and poisoning the unity in our dear state. At his age, he should be seeking peace and making amends, not actively working to plunge future generations into conflict.
“Though, his days in the political limelight are numbered, he seems tragically determined to leave the political space at its most disgraced and humiliated figure,” they added.
Chairman, therefore, called on all well-meaning Nigerians, the national media, and responsible civil society organizations to disregard his malicious fabrications and hold him to account for his words.
“The Forum, Kaduna State, remains steadfast in its commitment to advocating for equity, transparent governance, and the unity of all peoples of Kaduna State, a unity that must be built on truth and justice, not the pathological lies of a failed politician.”
It stated that, “El-Rufai left Kaduna State far more in ruins than he met it. Hundreds of thousands of Kaduna were ruined by his heartless and cruel policies of wanton demolition of residential areas, business premises and inhuman mass sack of workers.
“The truth is that, el-Rufai was more of a curse to the millions of his victims in Kaduna State than a blessing. May el-Rufai never happen to any part of Nigeria directly or indirectly,” Forum said.
Also in his speech, the spokesman of the Forum’s national body, Mr. Luka Binniyat, said the National Working Committee has observed with concern, some of their respected politicians have started gallivanting with the Mal. Nasir El-Rufai, warning that any political party that fields El-Rufai in a prominent position may lose Middle-Belt votes.
“Any political party that fields El-Rufai in a prominent position, or allows him to play a cardinal role in its party, be it a coalition or whatever, such a party stands a great risk of losing the votes of the Middle-Belters, because El-Rufai has clearly shown that he is not a friend of the Middle-Belt.
“Anything that will advance the goodwill, development and progress of the Middle-Belt, he stands against; and as such, we are declaring a personal no-grant when it comes to national politics.
“So, our message is clear. Anybody that wants to court the vote of the Middle-Belt should distance himself away from us,” he repeated.