“Former SGF Babachir Lawal disagrees with El-Rufai’s statement regarding Peter Obi’s presidential bid.”

“Babachir Lawal, a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, has taken issue with Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s assessment of Peter Obi as an unimportant candidate in the upcoming presidential election.”

Mr El-Rufai, while appearing on Journalists Hangout programme of TVC News on Thursday, argued that Mr Obi who is the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), cannot win the election despite opinion polls placing Mr Obi ahead of other presidential candidates in the election.

“According to recent polls, Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) is leading the presidential race, with Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) trailing behind. Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) is in fourth place, far behind the APC and PDP candidates. Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State, however, disputes the accuracy of these polls and accuses the LP of using ethnicity and religious biases in their campaign strategies.”

“Babachir Lawal, the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, stated that when President Buhari took office in 2015, he faced difficulties with his appointees over the execution of his orders. Lawal dismissed the notion of a cabal running the Buhari administration, saying that every government has an inner circle. In April 2017, President Buhari suspended Lawal for his alleged involvement in a N200 million grass-cutting contract with the Presidential Initiative in the North East (PINE). Six months later, he was officially removed from the position.”