Bomba Dauda
Former governorship candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in Kaduna State, Ambassador Dr. Polycarp Gankon, has criticised ex-Governor Nasir El-Rufai over his recent comments on Channels Television, accusing him of leaving behind “a legacy of division, bloodshed and bitterness.”
Gankon, who is also the Coordinator of the Southern Kaduna Unity Initiative, dismissed El-Rufai’s claims that the people of Southern Kaduna dislike him, describing the remarks as “a desperate search for relevance” and “a self-indictment of failed leadership.”
According to him, El-Rufai’s administration was marked by policies and utterances that “deepened mistrust, fuelled crises, and alienated entire communities across Kaduna State.”
“FOR EIGHT LONG YEARS, EL-RUFAI PRESIDED OVER KADUNA STATE WITH A FIST OF IRON, LEAVING BEHIND A LEGACY OF MISTRUST, BLOODSHED, AND BITTERNESS. HIS GOVERNMENT WAS KNOWN FOR PROMOTING ETHNO-RELIGIOUS FAULT LINES WHILE BRANDING WHOLE COMMUNITIES AS POLITICAL ENEMIES,” GANKON SAID.
He noted that peace has gradually returned to Southern Kaduna since El-Rufai left office, pointing out that the region has witnessed a sharp decline in killings, banditry, and ethnic clashes.
“IT IS OBVIOUS HE IS NOT PLEASED THAT TODAY KIDNAPPING, BANDITRY, ETHNIC ATTACKS, AND THE WANTON KILLINGS OF INNOCENT CHILDREN, WOMEN, AND THE ELDERLY HAVE DRASTICALLY REDUCED. IN THE LAST TWO YEARS, THERE HAS NOT BEEN A SINGLE MAJOR ETHNIC OR RELIGIOUS CONFLICT IN KADUNA. THAT IS THE LOUDEST VERDICT AGAINST HIS DIVISIVE STYLE OF GOVERNANCE,” GANKON STRESSED.
The former APGA candidate added that Kaduna people have moved on from what he described as El-Rufai’s “toxic brand of politics,” insisting that the state is “gradually rediscovering unity and peaceful coexistence.”
He further accused the former governor of attempting to sow fresh seeds of discord through inflammatory statements, but maintained that the people of Kaduna are “wiser now and will no longer be dragged back into the darkness of conflict.”
“Unfortunately, El-Rufai will remain stuck in the shadows of his own failures while Kaduna State and Nigeria move on,” Gankon declared.
