Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication and Social Media to Nyesom Wike, the former governor of Rivers State and current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has reignited a national conversation over the sincerity of former Kaduna State governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai’s public school enrollment pledge.
On September 1, 2025, Olayinka took to his verified social media account to question the current status of El-Rufai’s much-publicized decision to enroll his son in a public primary school. His remarks have stirred debate over whether the former governor’s action was a genuine reform effort or a political stunt.
“When El-Rufai’s political deceit was still working, El-Rufai enrolled his then six-year-old son in public primary school. Where is the boy now? Still in the Kaduna Public Primary School?” Olayinka wrote, casting doubt on the continuity of the pledge.
In 2019, El-Rufai made headlines when he enrolled his then six-year-old son, Abubakar Al-Sadiq, in Capital School Malali, a public primary school in Kaduna.
According to a Daily Post report of September 23, 2019, the move was part of his broader agenda to reform public education and demonstrate confidence in the system.
El-Rufai had urged other senior officials in his administration to follow suit, stressing that the enrollment was intended to bridge the gap between public and private education in the state. The symbolic act won him praise among some Nigerians, who saw it as a bold step towards revamping public institutions.
However, the story took a different turn two years later. On July 3, 2021, Punch reported that El-Rufai withdrew his son from Capital School Malali following two kidnap attempts by suspected bandits.
The decision came amid rising insecurity in Kaduna, where schools had increasingly become targets for abductions.
At the time, El-Rufai explained that keeping his son in the school would have endangered not only the child but also other pupils, given that bandits appeared determined to make him a target.
His withdrawal, though understandable from a security perspective, drew criticism from skeptics who argued that it weakened the credibility of his earlier education reforms.
Olayinka’s fresh remarks suggest that the former governor’s gesture may have been more about optics than substance.
By rhetorically asking where the boy is now, Wike’s aide implied that the enrollment was short-lived and ultimately failed to inspire lasting confidence in the state’s public schools.
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