The Social Democratic Party, SDP, has strongly disassociated itself from former Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasiru El-Rufai declaring that he has no affiliation with the party and is not authorized to represent or speak on its behalf.
This clarification was made by Inuwa Idris, the North-West Zonal Secretary of the SDP, during a press conference held in Kaduna on Friday. Idris stated that the former governor had repeatedly appeared at events, policy discussions, and stakeholder forums under the impression that he was representing the SDP.
“It has come to our attention that Malam Nasir El-Rufai has taken it upon himself to participate in various high-level engagements, purporting to speak on behalf of the SDP,” said Idris. “Let it be clearly known that El-Rufai is not a member of our party, and at no point has he received any mandate to act or speak on our behalf.”
According to Idris, El-Rufai’s name is not found in the party’s membership database. He added that the party’s acting National Chairman, Dr. Sadiq Umar, as well as other key leaders, were not consulted and did not authorize the former governor’s alleged representations.
The party has maintained that all official communication and representation must go through designated and approved channels. Idris emphasized that anyone or group engaging with the SDP must confirm the identity of its official delegates to avoid misinformation or manipulation.
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“We call on members of the public and political stakeholders to completely disregard any statements made by El-Rufai using the name of the SDP,” he said. “Such actions are fraudulent and misleading.”
Additionally, the SDP passed a vote of no confidence on El-Rufai and also demanded the immediate suspension of Dr. Umar Ardo, whom the party accused of promoting a new political platform — the African Democratic Alliance — while still falsely associating with the SDP.
“This kind of duplicity is unacceptable,” Idris declared. “The use of our platform to promote a separate political agenda shows a complete lack of integrity and will not be tolerated.”
He concluded by issuing a final warning to El-Rufai and others involved in what he described as impersonation and political manipulation.
The party, he said, would invoke the powers of the National Executive Council to set up a special committee to investigate and publish findings on any fraudulent behaviour associated with the party’s name.
“This should serve as a warning: desist from these deceitful activities or face the consequences,” he said.
NAN
