Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa (retd.), has accused former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, of deliberately planning the killing of people in Southern Kaduna during his administration.
Musa made the allegation on Thursday while appearing on Channels Television’s Politics Today monitored by The News Chronicle, where he also accused the former governor of deepening divisions between communities in Kaduna State.
The Defence Minister described El-Rufai’s tenure as “toxic”, alleging that his administration effectively divided Kaduna into two, with residents from Southern Kaduna finding it difficult to live in the northern part of the state and some people from the north moving south.
“We know how it was when El-Rufai was there; it was toxic. El-Rufai did a lot of terrible things in Kaduna State. He divided the state into two,” Musa said.
He said the killings recorded in Southern Kaduna during the former governor’s tenure had left residents deeply aggrieved, arguing that their pain could not simply be dismissed.
Musa was particularly scathing when asked about the feelings of Southern Kaduna residents towards El-Rufai.
“I think if there’s anything worse than unhappy, we can never be happy with somebody who has deliberately planned for the killing of our people,” he said.
The minister also alleged that El-Rufai had openly spoken about his administration’s dealings with bandits, including claims that the former governor paid bandits.
According to Musa, El-Rufai had discussed such actions in his public speeches and videos and “didn’t hide it.”
Musa contrasted the situation with the administration of incumbent Governor Uba Sani, whom he credited with making deliberate efforts to reunite communities and ease the divisions he said characterised the previous administration.
He, however, acknowledged that the reconciliation process was not yet complete.
The Defence Minister also accused El-Rufai of using his influence to demolish properties belonging to people with whom he had disagreements, alleging that such actions affected residents across the state.
Musa insisted that his criticism was not driven by his being from Kaduna, but by his concerns as a Nigerian.
He called for political leaders who would promote unity rather than exploit religious and ethnic differences.
“We should get politicians that want to unite Nigeria,” Musa said, warning against politicians who use religion or ethnicity to divide the country.
El-Rufai has previously faced allegations relating to the handling of insecurity in Kaduna during his tenure and has denied wrongdoing. Musa did not present specific evidence during the interview to substantiate his allegation that the former governor deliberately planned the killings.
