2023: El-Rufai Speaks On Contesting For Presidency, Supporting Southern Candidate

Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai on Thursday denied reports that he is planning to contest in the 2023 presidential election.

Governor El-Rufai stated that he just wants to finish his tenure in 2023, continue with his private business and make money to take care of his family.

The governor made the submission during the weekly press briefing organized by the presidential media team at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

El-Rufai disclosed that he would support any presidential candidate who emerged from the All Progressives Congress (APC) zoning structure in the Southern region.

He said, “I have zero ambitions. I just want to finish this job, get on with my private life, write another book, and make tons of money. The largest amount of money I ever got in my life was from writing Accidental Public Servant.

“I have no ambition; I’ve never had any ambition. And if I die today, I am quite accomplished and happy because I never in my life, based on my humble background, ever thought I would even enter this building ever in my life; how?

“God has been very kind to me. And my outings in public service have all been satisfactory? Why push my luck and go for a job with a 90 per cent chance of failure? So I’m not an ambitious person. I’m just a person that gets things done when given the opportunity. I’ve never desired to run even for this governorship.

“It was President Buhari that literally forced me to run. He insisted that some of us run for governorship just in case he did not get elected again. He felt that you know, we needed some ‘strong governance’. Those were the words he used. So I have no aspirations.”

The Kaduna governor stated that he would support any APC candidate that will have the interest of the country at heart no matter the region he is from the South.

He said, “I will support any APC candidate if I’m satisfied he will do the best for Nigeria. It doesn’t matter whether he’s from southwest, southeast or south-south; APC is what matters and the quality of the person.

“The discussion we are having is that the Presidency is zoned to the South. It’s not zoned to any particular place in the South. The South will have the first go at it. But we’re waiting to see who the aspirants are.”