Bitter X exchange exposes deep political divisions over Uba Sani, ADC and the El-Rufai legacy
The political and family crisis surrounding former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has taken a dramatic new turn, with two of his sons, Bashir and Mohammed Bello El-Rufai, locked in a bitter public confrontation.
Bashir El-Rufai, in a series of explosive posts on X on Saturday, August 29, accused his elder brother, Bello, of hypocrisy, political opportunism, disloyalty to the family and alleged substance abuse.
The posts, some of which were later deleted, also contained highly personal allegations about the lawmaker and his private life.
It reads:
I have a useless excuse for a brother, with his bony-ass face coated with an unknown white substance around his nostrils every night. That is your Member of the House of Representatives, representing a whole constituency, but he prefers alcohol and cocaine.
“Wawa (Hausa word for Fool). Telling me to kill myself—the idiot should first slaughter his daughter, then I will believe he is real and serious. Someone who had to wank to conceive children through IVF is the one sitting on a high horse. Go fix your balls. Your wives, both ex and present, were not the problem.
“He was stuck with Uba Sani until he realised he was being dumped, then suddenly remembered family loyalty and moved to the African Democratic Congress (ADC). Where was he before then?
“He is purely serving his own interests. When people like us were countering the ‘towel governor,’ the bastard was nowhere to be found—hiding, eating, and wiping his mouth. This is the same idiot who asked me to pipe down on my criticisms,” Bashir wrote in a post targeting his elder brother.
The allegations of cocaine and alcohol use have not been independently verified. Neither Bello nor the El-Rufai family had publicly responded to the allegations in the reports reviewed by Everyday.ng
At the heart of the confrontation, however, appears to be politics – particularly Bello’s relationship with Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani and his eventual defection from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the opposition African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Bashir accused his brother of remaining close to Sani until his political fortunes appeared to change, before suddenly returning to the family fold.
He questioned why Bello had remained in the APC after their father left the party and why he had not openly joined the campaign against Sani earlier.
The bitter exchange marks another extraordinary chapter in the increasingly public disagreements among members of the El-Rufai family.
THE ADC QUESTION
Bello, who represents Kaduna North Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, remained in the APC after his father left the party.
On May 7, 2026, however, he announced his resignation from the APC and formally joined the ADC, the opposition platform that had also attracted his father.
Three weeks later, Bello secured the ADC ticket to seek re-election in Kaduna North, winning the party’s primary election unopposed.
It was this political journey that became a major target of Bashir’s latest attack.
Bashir portrayed Bello’s defection as politically calculated, alleging that his brother remained aligned with Sani until it became clear that the relationship was no longer advantageous.
Bello has not publicly answered the allegations in the latest reports.
THE UBA SANI FACTOR
The brothers’ disagreement is inseparable from the spectacular breakdown in relations between Nasir El-Rufai and his successor, Uba Sani.
Sani was once regarded as a close political ally of El-Rufai and succeeded him as governor in 2023.
Their relationship subsequently deteriorated, with disputes over the finances inherited by the Sani administration becoming a major point of contention.
Sani said his government inherited $587 million in debt, N85 billion in domestic liabilities and 115 contractual obligations, arguing that the inherited financial burden had constrained his administration’s ability to pay salaries and execute projects.
The dispute escalated into a wider political confrontation, with El-Rufai and his supporters challenging aspects of the Sani administration while the governor defended his government’s record.
Bashir became one of the most persistent online critics of Sani.
Bello, by contrast, maintained a more restrained relationship with the governor for a period, a position that now appears to be one of the principal sources of tension between the two brothers.
‘WHERE WAS HE?’
Bashir’s central accusation is that Bello only embraced the family’s political position after his own relationship with Sani deteriorated.
In one of the posts reported by THISDAY, Bashir accused his brother of being “stuck with Uba Sani” until he believed he was being pushed aside, after which he allegedly rediscovered family loyalty and moved to the ADC.
The attack went beyond politics.
Bashir accused Bello of substance abuse and made graphic claims about his appearance and private life. He also alleged that Bello had previously asked him to tone down his criticism of Sani.
Those claims remain unsubstantiated allegations by Bashir, rather than established facts.
The personal nature of the exchange has raised questions about whether the dispute can still be contained as a private family matter.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE POSTS?
The controversy intensified because several of Bashir’s posts were subsequently deleted.
Reports did not establish precisely why they were removed, although accounts of the episode said the posts disappeared after an intervention by their mother.
The deletions, however, did little to prevent the controversy from spreading, with screenshots and reports of the exchange circulating widely online.
The latest incident is not the first time the El-Rufai brothers have engaged in public online confrontations.
Their previous exchanges have also generated controversy because of their unusually personal and politically charged nature. Premium Times reported in December 2025 that the brothers had repeatedly become embroiled in vulgar and politically charged exchanges on X.
A FAMILY UNDER PRESSURE
The latest family dispute comes as Nasir El-Rufai himself faces significant legal and political challenges.
The former governor has been in the custody of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) in connection with investigations into alleged financial wrongdoing during his tenure.
The ICPC said in March that El-Rufai remained in lawful custody pursuant to a court remand order. He has denied wrongdoing.
His legal troubles, the continuing feud with Sani and the emergence of the ADC as a major opposition platform have placed the El-Rufai family under intense political scrutiny.
The family’s political fortunes are now increasingly tied to the ADC ahead of the 2027 elections.
Bello’s defection and subsequent primary victory have strengthened his position within the opposition party, while his father’s political activities have also made the El-Rufai name an important component of the emerging opposition coalition.