Why Atiku Appointed El-Rufai As ADC Campaign Council Deputy Chairman – Dele Momodu

A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dele Momodu, has clarified the reasons behind former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s decision to appoint detained former Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, as the deputy chairman of his 2027 presidential campaign council.

Momodu, speaking during a live appearance on Channels Television’s programme, ‘The Morning Brief,’ on Friday, explained that the strategic selection was meant to acknowledge and honor the personal sacrifices made by the former governor.

Atiku had on Thursday officially unveiled the composition of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council in preparation for the upcoming 2027 general elections, designating Kashim Ibrahim-Imam as Chairman, alongside El-Rufai as Deputy Chairman.

Addressing the political development during the broadcast, Momodu described the gesture as a recognition of El-Rufai’s current legal battles, which he attributed to political targeting.

“It is a way of honouring his sacrifice because his travails, I can say, are quite political in nature,” Momodu said.

“He’s being held down not because he has committed any crime. He could have stayed away from the country. He chose to come back to the country. He knew he was going to be arrested, and he was arrested,” he elaborated.

Momodu further criticized the judicial restrictions placed on the former governor, questioning the severity of his bail requirements given his pivotal historical role in the ruling party’s rise to power.

“The bail conditions given to him are so horrendous that even his enemies would wonder why he has to go through such painful experience in the hands of a government that he helped to midwife,” he noted.

“If not for him, I’m sure President Bola Tinubu will not be in the office today,” Momodu added.