When I read the letter attributed to former Kaduna State Governor Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, one person immediately came to mind: Emir Muhammadu Sanusi II of Kano.
El-Rufai’s statement, titled “My Relationships and the Aftermath” and dated September 23, 2026, is carefully worded. He does not name anyone, accuse any individual of abandoning him, or explicitly demand reciprocity from people he previously supported. Instead, he reflects on the silence of some colleagues, friends and associates during what he describes as difficult circumstances. He says adversity has helped him see certain relationships more clearly and that he may quietly reconsider some of them.
That is precisely why the statement naturally invites speculation about some of the prominent relationships in El-Rufai’s political and personal history.
For me, one of the most obvious names that comes to mind is Muhammadu Sanusi II.
The El-Rufai–Sanusi relationship
Their relationship became particularly visible in March 2020, when Sanusi was removed as Emir of Kano by the administration of then-Governor Abdullahi Ganduje.
Following the dethronement, Sanusi was taken to Awe in Nasarawa State. El-Rufai subsequently travelled to meet him there. Reports at the time described the two as longstanding friends, with their relationship stretching back decades.
El-Rufai did considerably more than simply visit Sanusi.
Within days of Sanusi's removal, the Kaduna State Government appointed him to the board of the Kaduna State Investment Promotion Authority, where he became vice-chairman. He was also appointed Chancellor of Kaduna State University. El-Rufai explained that Sanusi's international reputation, experience and network could help Kaduna attract investment.
At the time, El-Rufai openly defended his relationship with Sanusi. He said the former emir had been his confidant since their teenage years and that he could not abandon him during his difficult moment.
That history makes Sanusi an understandable person to remember when reading El-Rufai's latest reflection.
But where does Sanusi stand today?
There is an important difference between 2020 and 2026.
Sanusi is no longer a dethroned monarch living away from Kano. In May 2024, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf reinstated him as Emir of Kano after signing the Kano State Emirate Council repeal legislation.
He has therefore returned to a powerful traditional institution with its own responsibilities, relationships and sensitivities. His position today is fundamentally different from the period when El-Rufai travelled to Nasarawa to stand beside him after his removal.
Consequently, if El-Rufai's letter is being interpreted as a reference to people who may not have publicly supported him during his current difficulties, it would be difficult to establish from the letter alone that Sanusi is the person being referenced.
Indeed, El-Rufai deliberately avoided naming anyone. He specifically acknowledged that people he had previously supported were free to make their own choices. Some could speak, others could remain silent, while others might distance themselves from past relationships. He said he did not wish to judge them simply because their response differed from what he or others might have expected.
That restraint is significant.
The bigger message
Perhaps the most interesting part of El-Rufai's statement is therefore not who he may have been referring to, but the principle behind it.
He appears to be saying that support given to people in the past was based on conviction rather than an expectation that they would repay the favour when circumstances changed.
At the same time, he acknowledges that difficult circumstances can reveal the nature of relationships and influence how people reassess those relationships.
Whether Emir Sanusi is among the people El-Rufai had in mind remains unknown. There is no evidence in the statement itself to establish that.
But the history between the two men is undeniable: when Sanusi faced one of the most difficult moments of his public life in 2020, El-Rufai visibly stood by him. Today, with El-Rufai himself facing a very different set of circumstances, his reflection on friendship, loyalty, silence and reciprocity inevitably brings some of those old relationships back into public conversation.
And perhaps that is the real power of the letter: **El-Rufai did not name names, but he has given Nigerians plenty to think about.**
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