Jonathan nearly jailed me – El Rufai

Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El Rufai said that former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan tried to jail me because he felt he was a threat to his second term ambition.

El Rufai’s assertion which was published as an interview in The Point Newspapers said that he was friends with the ex President from his days as the Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State.

He said his travails started in 2006 when he was the FCT Minister. “I have been associated with running for President, as I said, since 2005, 2006, about 15 years. I’ve suffered for this, I’ve even been exiled for it and Jonathan tried to put me in prison for it.

 “My name being mentioned with regard to presidential aspiration has been on since 2006, since I was running the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. People were speculating that the then President Olusegun Obasanjo was preparing to hand over to me. It was part of the reasons I was exiled. Late President Yar’adua was told, according to those around him, that Obasanjo shortlisted two names to succeed him – Yar’Adua’s name and mine. It was totally false.

 “But Yar’adua believed that, and he thought that I was a threat, and all the hullabaloo, lies and persecution that got me exiled for 23 months were as a result of that.”