A Lesson in Integrity: The El-Rufai and The Blogger Story
While Nasir El-Rufai was Governor of Kaduna State, there was a well-known blogger in Kaduna, much like Nagya.
Every day and night, the blogger criticized El-Rufai. He described him as a thief who was looting the state’s treasury.
El-Rufai did not arrest him. Instead, he made efforts to get his phone number.
One day, El-Rufai picked up his phone and called the blogger himself.
The phone rang.
El-Rufai: Salam Alaikum. Good morning.
Blogger: Good morning. Please, who am I speaking with?
El-Rufai: My name is Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai.
Blogger: Oh! Good morning, Your Excellency.
El-Rufai: Good morning, my brother. I have been seeing all your posts against my administration and how you allege that I have been misappropriating state funds.
Blogger: I’m sorry, sir. It is not what you think.
El-Rufai: It’s nothing. That is part of leadership. But can you spare some time to see me at the Government House tomorrow so we can discuss the issues? Don’t panic, feel free. I mean no harm.
Blogger: No problem, sir. What time?
El-Rufai: 10 a.m.
Blogger: Insha Allah, I will be there, sir.
El-Rufai: I will be expecting you. Will you be coming with your car or a motorcycle, so I can inform security to clear you at the gate?
Blogger: I will hire a tricycle, sir.
El-Rufai: Send me the number plate of the tricycle on your way, so I can inform security.
Blogger: Okay, sir.
Around 9 a.m. the next morning, the blogger hired a tricycle from his area and headed straight to the Government House. The security officers at the gate cleared him and directed him to the Governor’s parking lot. The ADC to the Governor came down and escorted him directly to the Governor’s office.
On getting to the office…
El-Rufai: Have you paid the tricycle man?
Blogger: No, sir.
El-Rufai pulled open his drawer and brought out an envelope containing N250,000. He gave it to the blogger to go and settle the tricycle driver and return.
The blogger collected the envelope, and while going downstairs, he opened it. He pulled out N5,000 and tucked the remaining envelope inside his boxers. On getting to the tricycle rider, he gave him the N5,000. The man was very happy.
What the blogger didn’t know was that there were CCTV cameras everywhere. El-Rufai was watching him from his office.
Before the blogger returned upstairs, the ADC had already instructed security at the gate to call the tricycle rider back.
When the blogger came back, El-Rufai stood up and said, “Can we go downstairs and discuss something?” The blogger said, “Yes, sir.”
El-Rufai and the blogger went downstairs, and to the blogger’s greatest surprise, he saw the tricycle man back.
El-Rufai asked the tricycle man, “How much did he give you?”
The tricycle man responded, “5k, sir.”
El-Rufai smiled and turned to the blogger. “How much did I give you to settle the tricycle?”
The blogger replied, “250k, sir.”
El-Rufai asked, “Where is the remaining money?”
Shaken, the blogger pulled the envelope from his boxers and handed it back to El-Rufai. El-Rufai collected it and gave the entire sum to the tricycle man.
Then El-Rufai said:
“You see life? You have been busy calling me a thief day and night simply because you have never had the opportunity to be in my position, and you have never caught me red-handed stealing. But what would you call what you just did, where you were caught red-handed?
Anyway, I only called you here to test you. If you had passed, that baby jeep parked over there and N30 million were supposed to be your gift for passing the integrity test. But unfortunately, you failed.
So stop judging others when you have not yet had the opportunity.
Leave this Government House now, you thief.”
Moral: El-Rufai is a very intelligent man. Never judge others until you have been tested in the same position.
