Asari Dokubo Is A Thug – El-Rufai

The Deputy National Secretary for the All Peoples Congress party, APC, Mallam Nasir El Rufai has called Niger Delta militant, Asari Dokubo a 'thug', adding that he cannot be compared to him.

El-Rufai, while explaining what took place during his recent detainment by the Nigerian Department of State Services (DSS), said “Asari Dokubu is a thug. I do not compare myself with thugs. I have never taken arms against a state. I have never stolen crude oil. I have never been called a militant. I’m a normal human being like every other Nigerian.”

On Thursday, after pressure from the All Progressive Congress Party, the Nigerian Department of State Services detained, ex-Niger Delta militant, Asari Dokubu for questioning over “inflammatory comments.” He was later released.

In 2013, Asari  Dokubu made public comments on Channels TV suggesting that if President Goodluck Jonathan didn’t win he 2015 elections Nigerians should expect bloodshed.

In response to the ongoing tumultuous political environment between Nigeria’s ruling Peoples Democratic (PDP) and APC parties, the Nigerian DSS earlier this year warned Nigerians to avoid inflammatory comments ahead of the 2015 Presidential elections scheduled for Feb. 15.


According to El-Rufai, during his detainment the SSS questioned him on his remarks made regarding the 2015 elections.

“I made a statement at a conference that we expect the 2015 elections to be free and fair and better organized than the travesty we saw in Anambra and Delta state recently, he told SaharaTV’s Rudolf Okonkwo. He also expressed that he would repeat the same statement again anytime.

He also reminded Nigerians of the existence of President Goodluck Jonathan’s controversial “watch list”, popularly referred to as the sniper list.

El-Rufai, a vocal critic of the Jonathan administration went further and expressed his displeasure with the upcoming National Conference describing it as a waste of resources set up to lure attention away from Nigeria’s real problem.

“The whole reason behind the conference is to divert attention of the failures of the sitting government,” he said.