The Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa, has accused former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir el-Rufai, of “doing a lot of terrible things in the state”.
Speaking during an interview on Channels Television on Thursday, Musa alleged that el-Rufai divided Kaduna along regional lines.
“El-Rufai did a lot of terrible things in Kaduna state. He divided the state into two. In that, if you are from the south, you cannot go to the north to live. Those ones from the north were moving to the south,” the minister said.
He added that Governor Uba Sani has, within one year, worked to reverse the division.
“You see now, everybody is free. Everybody has a say. It’s not 100 percent, let me tell you; it’s not 100 percent. But you can see that he’s making deliberate effort in uniting the state,” Musa said.
The minister said residents of southern Kaduna remain unhappy with the former governor over killings in the area, accusing him of admitting to paying bandits.
“If you look at his videos, his speeches, he was very proud of what he did. He told us he paid bandits. He told us he did this; he did that. He didn’t hide it,” he said.
Musa, however, said he does not consider el-Rufai an enemy, describing him as “misguided”.
He also accused the former governor of demolishing houses of perceived opponents.
“He had just personal issues with friends. The next thing, he sends a bulldozer to bulldoze your house down. He’s done it. It’s there on the TV,” Musa said.
The defence minister called on politicians to promote unity instead of exploiting religious and ethnic differences.
