Former Governor of Kaduna State Nasir El-Rufai has taken a firm stand in support of Naja’atu Muhammad, the leader of Northern Star, as controversy swirls around allegations against the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu.
In a now-viral TikTok video, Muhammad accused Ribadu of once working against President Bola Tinubu and other key political figures while serving as Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) She claimed that during his tenure at the anti-graft agency, Ribadu vowed in 2007 to frustrate the political ambitions of then-Governors Tinubu, George Akume of Benue State, and Orji Kalu of Abia State.
However, Ribadu has strongly denied these accusations In a letter issued on the 4th of February, 2025, his legal representative Ahmed Raji, SAN dismissed Muhammad’s claims as false and demanded a public apology and retraction The letter asserted that Ribadu “has never maintained such a viewpoint” against any of the three politicians.
Furthermore, Raji stated that Muhammad’s actions had caused irreparable damage to Ribadu’s reputation and challenged her to present evidence supporting her allegations.
Amid the intensifying debate, El-Rufai waded into the controversy, taking to his official Facebook page on the 5th of February 2025, to share a screenshot of an old newspaper article that seemingly corroborated Muhammad’s assertions.
Backing her claims, El-Rufai fired back, “Nuhu must have serious amnesia”, maintaining that “Najaatu’s statement is accurate.”
He further elaborated
• Records from Senate proceedings in 2006 would confirm Ribadu’s statements
• A Daily Trust report from February 2007 reaffirmed the claims
• Federal Executive Council (FEC) conclusions from 2006, which can be retrieved from the Cabinet Secretariat, also contained similar accusations made by the EFCC against several officials.
El-Rufai recalled that during a Special FEC meeting in 2006, where he was present, Ribadu’s EFCC made similar presentations, accusing numerous sitting officials He insisted that accessing these official records would “remove all doubts”
Concluding his statement, El-Rufai issued a pointed remark, “This is for the record and to remind the morally-flexible that at some point in our national life, silence is no longer golden.”