El-Rufai’s Son Bashir Apologises To VP Shettima For Calling Him ‘Spineless,’ Calls It ‘A Reckless Tweet’
El-Rufai’s Son Bashir Apologises To VP Shettima For Calling Him ‘Spineless,’ Calls It ‘A Reckless Tweet’
Bashir admitted that the remark directed at Shettima was inappropriate and did not reflect his true opinion of the Vice-President.
Bashir El-Rufai, the outspoken and often controversial son of former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, has publicly apologised to Nigeria’s Vice-President, Kashim Shettima, over a previous social media post in which he described the country’s number two citizen as “spineless.”
El-Rufai, who has repeatedly stirred public debate with his blunt social media commentary, including once referring to President Bola Tinubu as “Escobar,” made the apology known on Sunday on his verified X (formerly Twitter) handle.
Bashir admitted that the remark directed at Shettima was inappropriate and did not reflect his true opinion of the Vice-President.
“I want to use this medium to personally apologize to the Vice-President of Nigeria, His Excellency Sir Kashim Shettima, for my old post referring to his person as spineless. He is someone I greatly admire & respect,” El-Rufai wrote.
He further acknowledged that the comment was made in error, describing it as a lapse in judgment.
“It was a reckless tweet. @KashimSM,” he added.
Iwant to use this medium to personally apologize to the Vice-President of Nigeria, His Excellency Sir Kashim Shettima for my old post referring to his person as spineless. He is someone I greatly admire & respect.
It was a reckless tweet. @KashimSM.
— Bashir El-Rufai (@BashirElRufai) March 29, 2026
On September 9, 2025, SaharaReporters reported that Bashir declared that he did not subscribe to the idea of “One Nigeria,” insisting that regional autonomy remained the only viable solution to the country’s challenges.
He employed a veiled reference, calling President Bola Tinubu ‘Escobar’ in the text, without explicitly stating his identity.
Pablo Escobar, the notorious Colombian drug lord, has become a nickname used online by some opponents of President Tinubu.
The nickname is rooted in long-standing allegations from the 1990s, when Tinubu was linked to a drug trafficking investigation in the United States.
Court records show that Tinubu forfeited $460,000 to the U.S. government in connection with a cocaine-related case.
Although he was never convicted, critics have used this forfeiture to question his integrity and draw parallels to Pablo Escobar, who was one of the most notorious drug traffickers in history.
On Mar 11, 2025, SaharaReporters reported that Bashir made a controversial comment on X, suggesting that the killings in Southern Kaduna would persist if residents continued to attack Fulani herdsmen.
SaharaReporters observed that Bashir, known for his combative presence on social media, deleted the tweet shortly after receiving backlash.
His comment was in response to a post from an X user, @qykali, who had criticised him for referring to President Bola Tinubu as “Pablo.”
The user had described Bashir’s father as a “Fulani irredentist” who oversaw “industrial-scale ethnic cleansing” in Southern Kaduna during his eight-year tenure as governor.
Reacting to this criticism, Bashir fired back: “It is your stupid mother that is an elephant. And Southern Kaduna residents will keep seeing sheghe (trouble or suffering) if they continue to attack indigenous Fulani herdsmen. Oloshi.”
The use of the term sheghe (shege), a Hausa slang word implying suffering or severe consequences, has drawn condemnation, with many accusing Bashir of justifying violence against Southern Kaduna communities, who have long been victims of deadly attacks by suspected herdsmen.
