Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has said he holds no grudge against former associates, friends and family members who have remained silent or distanced themselves from him during his current circumstances.
El-Rufai said rather than dwelling on the actions of those who had chosen not to support him, he had been reflecting on the nature of his relationships and the principles that had guided his interactions with people over the years.
The former governor made this known in a statement titled, “My Relationships and the Aftermath,” published on his X handle on Wednesday.
According to him, his decision to stand by people and causes in the past was based on his faith, upbringing, personal convictions and conscience, rather than an expectation that those individuals would reciprocate when his own circumstances changed.
“Over the years, I have stood by people and for causes I believed in, sometimes in difficult circumstances and at considerable personal cost. I did so not in expectation of praise, gratitude or reciprocity, but because I believed it was right,” he said.
El-Rufai acknowledged that people who had benefited from his support were entitled to determine how they would respond to his present situation.
He said some could choose to speak in his support, while others could remain silent, distance themselves from him or even deny previous relationships.
“Those I have supported are free to make their own choices now that circumstances are reversed. Some may speak; others may remain silent. Others may even deny our relationship or try rewriting history,” he said.
The former governor said he was not interested in judging people simply because their reactions differed from what he or others might have expected from them.
“Their reasons are their own, and I do not wish to judge them merely because their response differs from what others—or even I—might have expected,” he added.
El-Rufai, however, said his experiences had made him take a closer look at some of his relationships, noting that difficult periods often reveal the strength and nature of personal connections.
“Adversity has a way of illuminating relationships,” he said.
He added that the experience could cause him to reassess some relationships and consider what people who regarded him as a role model expected from those relationships.
“That is neither reproach nor condemnation; it is simply part of seeing people, and life, more clearly,” he said.
Despite the disappointment he may have experienced, El-Rufai said he would not allow the conduct of others to make him regret the support he had offered in the past.
“I have no regrets about standing by people or for causes when I believed it was right to do so, and I bear no resentment towards anyone who chooses not to do the same for me,” he stated.
On alleged wrongs committed against him, the former governor said he would not pursue revenge or retribution, leaving the matter to God.
“As for any injustice, ingratitude or injury done to me, I seek neither revenge nor retribution. Ultimate accountability belongs to Almighty Allah, and I leave that judgment to Him, in this world and in the Hereafter,” he said.
El-Rufai said his focus remained on maintaining peace with his conscience and his faith, stressing that everyone would ultimately have to live with the consequences of their choices.
“In the end, each of us must live with the choices we make, and posterity will render whatever verdict it sees fit. My only concern is to remain at peace with my conscience and, above all, with Almighty Allah,” he said.
