Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar visited former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai on Thursday night in a show of solidarity, just hours after El-Rufai denounced an attempted arrest by security agents at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, upon his return from Cairo, Egypt.
In a post on X on Friday morning, Atiku said “Last night, I paid a solidarity visit to the former Governor of Kaduna State and stalwart of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, following the failed attempt by the partisan ICPC to arrest him at the airport upon his arrival in the country.”
Atiku and El-Rufai are members of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), an opposition party which seeks to unseat the ruling All Progressives Congress in the 2027 presidential election.
While clarifying his encounter with security agents as seen in a viral social media video the former governor accused authorities of executive overreach and disregard for the rule of law.
“My lawyers have issued a statement that condemns the illegal attempt to arrest me today at the Abuja airport upon my arrival from Cairo,” he wrote.
“My lawyers have issued a statement that condemns the illegal attempt to arrest me today at the Abuja airport upon my arrival from Cairo,” El-Rufai wrote.
“Our country must outgrow executive overreach and deliberate disregard for the rule of law,” his post on X stated. Earlier, El-Rufai’s media aide, Muyiwa Adekeye, had disclosed that security agents attempted to arrest the former governor on Thursday upon his arrival from Cairo, Egypt.
Adekeye, writing on his verified X handle shortly after the incident, stated: “Security agents today attempted to arrest Malam Nasir El-Rufai as he arrived on a flight from Cairo. Malam El-Rufai declined to follow them without a formal invitation.”