Kaduna Killings: ‘El-Rufai complicit in mass murder, victims will testify’ — Biniyat

By Tolulope Oke

The crisis trailing former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has taken a dramatic turn as the Middle Belt Forum (MBF) has vowed to mobilise survivors of his administration to testify against him in court over allegations of mass murder.

The Forum declared that the ongoing controversy between the former governor and top defence officials has presented a golden opportunity for the people of Southern Kaduna, Shiite Muslims, and other victims to finally get justice for eight years of alleged misrule.

Speaking on Arise TV on Wednesday, the National Spokesperson of the Middle Belt Forum, Luka Biniyat, alleged that El-Rufai’s actions, inactions, and utterances directly enabled the slaughter of innocent citizens during his tenure.

“It’s an opportunity for all the victims, survivors of El-Rufai’s misrule, to come out in masses to substantiate as witnesses what the retired General, the Minister of Defence, said,” Biniyat stated.

Biniyat disclosed that the Forum is already preparing a line-up of victims ready to step into the witness box should the ongoing dispute transition into a full-blown court case.

“We are going to bring in people who are going to testify that, yes, he is complicit in the mass murder of not only Southern Kaduna, but including the Shia and other people who were victims of his misrule,” he declared.

When pressed to provide evidence of the weighty allegations, Biniyat drew the line, insisting that the Forum would not conduct a media trial but would save its arsenal for a judge.

“We cannot bring proof on national television and tender it until the courts ask for that evidence, or those witnesses,” he noted.

The MBF spokesperson also strongly dismissed claims that the recent statements by defence chiefs against the former governor amounted to a political witch-hunt.

Addressing the specific comments made by top security chiefs, which the raw text attributed interchangeably to Defence Minister Badaru Abubakar and General Christopher Musa, Biniyat argued that the military leadership was simply stating the facts when confronted by the press.

“No, that’s a wrong perception. It was you, the media, that invited him for an interview, and in the course of the interview, a question was put to him,” Biniyat argued. “So, it has nothing to do with political victimization.”

According to the MBF, the unfolding drama has brought immense relief to communities that suffered under El-Rufai’s heavy-handed administration.

“The people that have been his victims, whether they are Muslims or Christians, are very happy that El-Rufai is being exposed in this manner,” he added.

The Forum has now called for an informal, widespread investigation into the former governor’s tenure, urging all aggrieved parties to unite and ensure that the allegations against him are scrutinised in a court of competent jurisdiction.

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