Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi were among the prominent dignitaries who gathered at the National Mosque in Abuja on Sunday for the funeral prayers of Hajiya Umma El-Rufai, mother of former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai.
Also present at the Janazah (Islamic funeral prayer) were the 16th Emir of Kano, Lamido Sanusi; billionaire businessman Aliko Dangote; former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami; and the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
Governors in attendance included Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani, Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum, and Niger State Governor Mohammed Bago. Former Zamfara State Governor Abdulaziz Yari and ex-National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Ganduje, were also spotted among the mourners.
Videos and photos circulating on social media showed Obi and other dignitaries arriving at the mosque, where they were seated with other mourners before joining the congregation for the funeral rites.
Atiku confirmed his attendance in a post on his X handle: “Today, I joined family, friends and associates of Mallam Nasir El-Rufai and the extended El-Rufai family at the Janazah (funeral prayer) of the matriarch of the family, Hajiya Umma El-Rufai. May God continue to comfort the family and all who mourn her. And may Allah grant her Aljannah Firdaus. Amin.”
Hajiya Umma El-Rufai passed away on Friday in Cairo, Egypt, following a brief illness. Earlier tributes to the deceased had been paid by President Bola Tinubu, former Senator Shehu Sani, and Nuhu Ribadu, among other notable Nigerians.
