Political Class Has Ruined This Country —el-Rufai

The former minister of Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, has blamed the political class for ruining this country.

He said that the tragedy of Nigeria was that those who attained political, economic and social greatness today attained it from the ruins of the country.

El-Rufai, who said this during the ‘book signing ceremony,’ of his latest work, The Accidental Public Servant, held at Sheraton Hotel and Towers, Ikeja, Lagos, southwest Nigeria, added that it is only the youth that can make the country work again.

The former minister who lamented that Nigeria’s backwardness is worrisome, said further that many people mentioned in the book were not happy becasue politicians loved to pretend that they were upright.

He said that all the attacks on him on the contents of his book would not controvert the facts because it all happened during his days as minister.

He said the loss of sense of history by the present generation, which denied the people the knowledge that Nigeria, as a country, once worked effectively, was the reason for his constant weeping.

He added that Nigerians that are up to 50 years old witnessed  when Nigeria worked, adding that was when Nigerians would write letters to government departments and get reply; when they applied for scholarships without knowing anybody and same were granted on merit.

“It is only the youth that can make this country work again and to do that, they must embrace the ingredients of dedication, commitment and honesty.

“Seventy-five per cent of the present population of the country is within 35 years bracket. They never knew that this country once worked efficiently and effectively,” he said.

“I have been under attack for two weeks now and have said nothing because my book says it all. It is my book, I did not write about their girlfriends because it is between them and God, I wrote about issues that will help the nation,” he said.

Giving an overview of the book, Muyiwa Adekeye said: “Accidental Public Servant is an inspirational book that shows the possibilities of Nigeria but how tragedy conspired to stop the possibilities.

“The book tells the story of El-Rufai’s service to Nigeria while occupying and not occupying office. It reveals the third term agenda, and tells us how we can approach the challenges of leadership,” he said.

Also speaking, Pastor Tunde Bakare, the Convener of the Save Nigeria Group (SNG) and host of the event, reiterated his challenge to those against the book to write theirs.

“God positioned El-Rufai so that Nigerians can know the truth. Our people deserve to know the truth. If you are angry with the book, write your own,” Bakare said.

He commended El-Rufai for saying the truth, regardless of whose ox was gored.

“The book is about all the things that have held us backward. If you can locate what is wrong with our nation, it will not be difficult to fix it,” he said.

—Yisa Jamiu