Senator Ali Ndume has launched a blistering attack on President Bola Tinubu’s administration, accusing it of being filled with what he called kakistocrats—the least qualified—and kleptocrats—those who exploit power for personal gain.
In a Tuesday interview on Arise News, the senator from Borno expressed disappointment over what he described as Tinubu’s reliance on loyalty over competence in building his government.
Citing the treatment of former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai during the ministerial nomination process, Ndume argued that Tinubu missed a crucial opportunity to appoint capable hands. “You see, that was where Mr. President got it wrong. You don’t form your government with dependence,” he said. “I told you I’m not El-Rufai’s fan or friend or anything, but truth must be told.”
Ndume warned that Tinubu’s transition from political strategist to national leader requires a shift in mindset and openness to criticism. “The President is a kingmaker, remember? So when the kingmaker becomes a king, then there is a problem,” he said. “He must surround himself with people who will tell him the truth. This is now what is lacking in this government.”
The senator also addressed comments made by presidential aide Bayo Onanuga, who recently referred to him as a “frustrated lone wolf.” Brushing aside the remark, Ndume dismissed Onanuga as a mere subordinate. “Bayo Onanuga is just in Nigeria. He is a domestic staff to the president. I have been a senator four times. How dare he call me that?” he asked. “But I’m happy he called me a lone wolf.”
Describing his political journey as one marked by perseverance and grace, Ndume said his rise to power was not dependent on connections. “I am a son of nobody who became somebody without knowing anybody. Ask the president. I’m not one of his dependents. I’m his ally,” he declared, asserting his independence from the presidency.
He went further to argue that Tinubu himself, were the roles reversed, would be among the loudest critics of the government’s current trajectory. “If we were to swap positions, and I’m the president, doing the same thing he is doing now, he would have been on the street. He has done it before… if the wrong thing is happening,” Ndume said.
Despite overtures from within the presidency aimed at placating him, the senator remained resolute in his stance. “Even today, somebody from the government is saying, ‘Why don’t you come over?’ I say, I will not come over. I’m a senator,” he said, stressing that in a functional democracy, it is the president who should court lawmakers not demand their submission.
Leave a comment