Buhari didn’t know insurgents threatened to abduct him, says el-Rufai

Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna state, says President Muhammadu Buhari did not know about a threat by insurgents to abduct him.

At the weekend, insurgents in a video clip threatened to abduct the president and el-Rufai.

The insurgents are suspected to be behind the kidnapping of passengers from a Kaduna-bound train in March.

On March 28, 2022, gunmen attacked the train, killed eight people, injured many, and kidnapped over 60 persons.

Speaking on a radio programme in Kaduna on Wednesday, the governor said the president assured him that he had given a clear order to the security agencies to deal with the insurgents decisively.

“I also heard about a video where they threatened to abduct Buhari and myself. I have been warned to be careful including my family too,” Daily Trust quoted el-Rufai as saying.

“We must rise up to deal with these people. This is why I met with the president on Sunday and told him about these problems. I also told him about the video because up to that day he was not even aware.

“I told him and the following day, Zamfara state governor, Bello Matawalle, also confirmed to him that he saw the video too so as to take action.

“The president assured me that he met with the service chiefs three, four days before our meeting and that he gave them a clear directive to have a comprehensive military operation to deal with those people.

“We hope the soldiers and police that were given the directives will hasten up to finish the job.”

The governor said he hopes the federal government would do the right thing about the rising security problem across the country.