Former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai has revealed how an unfounded bank-loan allegation prevented ex-President Muhammadu Buhari from appointing Chief Audu Ogbeh as Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) in 2015.
Speaking at a Night of Tribute on Monday at the Bola Tinubu International Conference Centre, Abuja, El-Rufai recalled a behind-the-scenes account shortly after the All Progressives Congress (APC) secured victory in the 2015 elections.
According to him, Buhari had initially decided to select a Christian from the Middle Belt for the top government role and had specifically chosen Ogbeh.
However, the plan was abandoned after some individuals around the president allegedly claimed that Ogbeh owed banks about ₦2 billion from his farming business and would be distracted by the debt.
“The next time the president called me, he said some things had come up and he was appointing someone else as SGF,” El-Rufai said. “After the announcement, I found out he had been told Chief Ogbeh owed a huge loan and would focus on repaying it instead of the job. Borrowing is not a crime; he runs a thriving farm and was servicing the loan.”
El-Rufai added that Buhari later acknowledged he had been misled and attempted to make amends by appointing Ogbeh as Minister of Agriculture, a position he held from 2015 to 2019.
Chief Ogbeh, a respected farmer and former national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, passed away recently, prompting tributes from across the country.
