Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has stated that he was never banned from coming to the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Abuja, adding that nobody can stop him from visiting the place.
The governor stated this while fielding questions from State House correspondents after joining President Muhammadu Buhari to perform the two-raka’at Juma’at weekly prayer at State House Mosque, Abuja, on Friday.
Rumours had made the round on social media that the Kaduna state executive was banned from the Presidential Villa for allegedly leaking a memo he wrote to Buhari on September 22, 2016.
In the memo, Mr. El-Rufai alerted President Buhari that he was losing the vision and the momentum with which All Progressives Congress, APC, started its change agenda.
The governor also in the memo, advised the President to effect changes in the leadership of some federal agencies and establishments, and to communicate constantly with Nigerians, so they will know the plans of his government.
Mr. El-Rufai, however, told the State House correspondents that he was not stopped from coming to the Aso Rock, and that nobody can stop him from visiting the Villa.
According to him, he stopped frequenting the villa because the President needs quality time to rest and also attend to challenges of governance.
“No one ever stopped me from coming to the villa and no one can stop me from coming to villa.
“As a governor I come here, I have blank cheques, no one checks me at the gate but I believe what the President needs is for those that love him to keep away from him and allow him to rest.
“The President needs quality time to rest because it is meeting too many people that strains leadership.
“I am a governor and I know that when I meet 10 people in a day I get really tired, it is not the paperwork, it is not really the memos approving them or asking questions that strain a leader, it is the stream of visitors.
“I do not want to contribute to the President’s problem by coming here every day. I am in touch with him,” he added.
