Governor Nasir El-Rufai was showered a confetti of praises as he turned 60 as family members, friends and associates celebrated with him at Sir Kashim Ibrahim House last Monday.
The celebration which featured testimonies, was attended by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, Mr Godwin Obaseki, the Edo State Governor and Mr Simon Lalong, Governor of Plateau State as well as Dr Kayode Fayemi, the Ekiti State Governor. Senate President Ahmad Lawan, Minister of Transport, Mr Chibuike Amaechi and his Finance Ministry counterpart, Hajiya Zainab Ahmed were also at the occasion.
The climax of the celebration which was also witnessed by the Emir of Kano, His Royal Highness Muhammad Sanusi II, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi and Mr Adams Oshiomhole, the National Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC) and several dignitaries, was the presentation of two books on El-Rufai’s selected writings and speeches, titled ‘’These Times’’
Earlier, President Muhammadu Buhari set the ball rolling a day before the event, when he said that “El-Rufai’s foresight, wisdom and unusual capacity to mobilise people and resources to actualise dreams stand him out in leadership and administration.”
In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, Buhari noted that El-Rufai’s entry into public service was truly accidental, but his contributions were deliberate, well-thought-out and long–lasting.
Similarly, the Progressives Governors Forum (PGF) commended the celebrant’s leadership, vision and commitment to a united prosperous Nigeria, in a statement signed by Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State and chairman of the forum.
Also, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu noted that ‘’whether as Director-General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Minister of the Federal Capital Territory or Kaduna State Governor, you have served to the best of your abilities with unquestionable zeal and energy.
‘’Your reputation as a public servant, eager to confront challenges, is well-deserved. It is not surprising that this milestone birthday has come with you still in active public service,’’ he added.
Lamenting the situation in the north, the Emir of Kano said that although he wished El-Rufai a happy birthday, but he doesn’t want him to be happy as a leader because of the negative indices of human development prevailing in the north.
Emir Sanusi however praised the celebrant for improving education and healthcare in Kaduna State, adding that northern leaders should follow El-Rufai’s example by investing in those sectors.
Similarly, the Ooni of Ife said Nigeria needs leaders like El-Rufai as he has ‘’a massive engine capable of pulling anything to achieve result’’. He described Kaduna State Governor as the man of the moment, just as he commended his courage in taking tough decisions to achieve great results.
AbdulHakeem Mustapha (SAN), El-Rufai’s lawyer, also revealed the Governor of Kaduna State as a very knowledgeable man who has 83 certificates from the United States-based Harvard University.
In her welcome address, Deputy Governor of Kaduna State, Dr Hadiza Balarabe described El-Rufai as an embodiment of the most revered virtues of selflessness and sacrifice.
According to her, the Governor is ‘’promoting unity among the diverse people of Kaduna without bias, equal empowerment of the haves and the vulnerable with opportunities, overcoming the forces that had held Kaduna down and made important and lasting changes in gender, education, health and development through his relentless deployment of talent, unique style and distinctive vision.’’
She reminded that in 2015, El-Rufai set an example by taking a pay cut and reducing the number of ministries, and political appointees in order to save cost and bring back smiles and happiness to the people after years of absence of social services and infrastructural development.
Dr Balarabe said that the day’s event was ‘’ the celebration of a man who championed the conduct of unarguably, Nigeria’s freest and fairest Local government election in Kaduna State in 2018, where electronic voting was implemented for the first time in Nigeria.’’
In his response, El-Rufai thanked the guests for honouring the invitation, adding that he is humbled by the tributes.
Speaking further, the Governor revealed that the most daring decision he ever took is the selection of Dr Balarabe as his running mate in the 2019 election.
El-Rufai explained that his choice of Dr Balarabe was made to take religion and ethnicity off the table in Kaduna State, adding that he inherited a state deeply “religionised and ethnicised” and needed to make a difference.
According to El-Rufai, his decision ‘’to pick a woman, a Muslim as my running mate to contest election in Kaduna state. It was the most daring decision I have taken because in this state, everything is religionised.’’
‘’She confessed to me months after we had won the election that, when I called to inform her I was nominating her to be my running mate, she thought, oh, this man is going to lose election because of me,’’ El-Rufai added.
“But, we won. And I say we probably won because of her, not the other way round. So, I want to thank our team. We have a very hard-working team in Kaduna. I have been blessed to have hard-working, intelligent people around who do all the work, while I end up taking the credit that I don’t deserve.”
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