Former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai has resigned from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and joined the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

According to him, he decided due to the APC's deviation from its founding ideals and failure to address internal concerns.

El-Rufai dumped the APC hours after paying a visit to a suspended member of party, Rauf Aregbesola, and the cleric of Citadel Global Church, Pastor Tunde Bakare.

A few days ago, El-Rufai also visited the immediate past President, Muhammadu Buhari, in his Kaduna home.

Though details of the meetings have not been made known, they may not be unconnected to the move to build a coalition ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

El-Rufai has been making such moves since he fell out with President Bola Tinubu whom he helped get to power.

The promise to make him a minister in the Tinubu administration was blocked by the Senate after the former governor failed to scale through security clearance.

He has since been expressing his displeasure against the Tinubu administration and the APC which he says he no longer recognizes, adding that the party has left him behind.

Since the comment, El-Rufai has been spotted at gatherings attended by top opposition figures like former vice president Atiku Abubakar whom Tinubu defeated in the 2023 presidential election.

He's also rumoured to be nursing presidential ambition even though some quarters believe his moves are for the benefit of Atiku.

In a statement announcing his resignation from the APC, the former governor said, “Developments in the last two years confirm that there is no desire on the part of those who currently control and run the APC to acknowledge, much less address, the unhealthy situation of the party.

“At this point in my political journey, I have come to the conclusion that I must seek another political platform for the pursuit of the progressive values I cherish.”

El-Rufai, who played a key role in the formation of the APC in 2013, recalled his efforts in negotiating the merger of political parties that led to the creation of the ruling party. He also highlighted his contributions to the APC’s electoral successes in 2015, 2019, and 2023, as well as his tenure as Kaduna State governor, during which he implemented policies focused on education, healthcare, infrastructure, job creation, and investment.

“My eight-year tenure in Kaduna State was devoted to implementing progressive policies to advance human development,” he said. “These records count for little in the current APC that has castrated its organs and treated its membership with contempt in the last two years. I find this no longer acceptable.”

ASA