Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has disclosed how he resisted intense pressure from top All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftains to manipulate local government elections during his tenure.
Instead, he opted for electronic voting to ensure transparency and credibility.
Speaking in a Symfoni TV interview, El-Rufai emphasized his commitment to electoral integrity:
“We went to China and got the electronic voting equipment because I believed it was important to assess our performance after two to three years in office.
The best way to do that was through credible local government elections.”
He revealed that his decision faced stiff opposition from within his party.
“I was the only one in favor because I was the governor. My colleagues from CPC, ANPP, and ACN urged me to rig the elections against the PDP, just as they had done to us for 16 years.
They wanted to write the results and win all the LGs, but I refused. Not on my watch.”
Despite losing some positions, El-Rufai stood by his decision, saying the results reflected the people’s will:
“We lost some chairmanships and council seats, but overall, we won in more than three-quarters of the state. That was fair enough.”
He described the elections as historic:
“As far as I know, this was the only time in Nigeria’s history that local government elections were truly free and fair. In most cases, state electoral commissions ensure that the ruling party wins everything.”
(Watch from minute 11:44 for full details.)
El-Rufai acknowledged that while some governors have allowed minor opposition victories, the general trend remains that ruling parties dominate local elections.
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