El-Rufai’s son calls Shettima spineless, urges action against Aso Villa family

A now deleted social media post by Bashir Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, son of former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai, has sparked debate online after he publicly criticized Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima.

In a now deleted post shared on X (formerly Twitter) on March 6, 2026, Bashir El-Rufai described the Vice President as “painfully spineless” while urging him to take decisive action against what he called a “corrupt criminal family system” within the Presidential Villa.

“I like Shettima. He’s just painfully spineless. I hope one day he realizes he is positioned in a unique place, and ability to take the whole corrupt criminal family system at the Villa down. He has the leverage tbh,” he wrote.

The remark appears to suggest that the Vice President possesses significant influence within the administration but has not exercised it forcefully enough to challenge alleged wrongdoing at the seat of government.

The question on social media is – what does Bashir seem to suggest by asking the VP to take down the President??

Political observers note that the unguarded remark could suggest that the former governor’s son wants the Vice President to take action that could see the president eliminated. By the Nigerian Constitution, if that happens, Shettima would automatically become president.

Many political commentators have condemned his unguarded remarks and have called for a probe into the matter, with some suggesting that his statement is treasonable and could land him in trouble with the authorities.

As of press time, Bashir El-Rufai had not released any follow-up clarification regarding the post.