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Omoyele Sowore has criticised the continued detention of former Kaduna governor Nasir El-Rufai.
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The AAC presidential candidate described the detention as political vendetta rather than justice.
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His comments triggered a heated debate on X, with users divided over El-Rufai’s treatment.
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Supporters cited due process concerns, while critics pointed to El-Rufai’s political record and past actions.
April 13, (THEWILL) — African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate for the 2027 election, Omoyele Sowore, has criticised the continued detention of former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai, describing it as an act of political vendetta rather than the pursuit of justice.
Sowore made the claim in a post on X, where he argued that injustice should not become acceptable simply because the person affected is unpopular.
“It may not bother some people, but the continued detention of @elrufa is not about justice; it is political vendetta,” Sowore wrote, calling for El-Rufai’s release under the hashtag #FreeElRufaiNow.
According to Sowore, society risks normalising oppression when it remains silent because the victim is someone it dislikes. He argued that tolerating alleged injustice against one person could eventually make it easier for similar treatment to be directed at others.
It may not bother some people, but the continued detention of @elrufai is not about justice; it is political vendetta. It is easy to look the other way because he is not your headache, and perhaps because you don’t consider him a nice person. But that is exactly how oppression… pic.twitter.com/MAdKK1cjcM
— Omoyele Sowore (@sowore) August 12, 2026
Nigerians Split Over Sowore’s Call to Free El-Rufai
His comments triggered a divided reaction on X, with some users supporting his position while others accused him of hypocrisy and questioned whether he would take the same stance if the political circumstances were reversed.
One user, @BigJman1000, alleged that El-Rufai’s detention was linked to his criticism of the current administration, arguing that the government was uncomfortable with people exposing what he described as its failures.
Another user, @truthnfun, said the situation raised broader concerns about accountability, asking who would compensate El-Rufai for time spent in detention if he were eventually released.
However, @agroconomyucn challenged Sowore’s position, arguing that his stance could be different if he were president and El-Rufai had illegally accessed sensitive government security information.
Other reactions were more critical of El-Rufai himself. @NnamdiWilson04 argued that the former governor was facing consequences connected to the political system he helped build, while referencing his past comments about political power in Kaduna and at the federal level.
Meanwhile, @babalolaol68624 directly appealed to President Bola Tinubu to release El-Rufai, describing his continued detention as unjust and noting the former governor’s past support for Tinubu.
The competing reactions highlight the political sensitivity surrounding El-Rufai’s case, with the debate increasingly extending beyond his individual circumstances to questions about political accountability, due process and the treatment of government critics.
Segun Adeyemi serves as the Associate Editor of THEWILL Newspaper, leveraging more than ten years of editorial expertise and a proven track record in mainstream journalism.
