Former Kaduna governor alleges unlawful restrictions on visits while in detention

Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has filed a fresh N10 billion lawsuit against the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission over alleged restrictions on visits by his wife and son while he remains in detention in Abuja.

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The suit, filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja on August 13, 2026, seeks to enforce what El-Rufai described as his fundamental rights under the Constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

El-Rufai, through his lawyer, Ubong Akpan, alleged that ICPC officials prevented his wife, Aichatou Asabe, and his son, Abba El-Rufai, from visiting him.

The former governor also joined the ICPC chairman and the Attorney-General of the Federation as defendants.

At the centre of the El-Rufai ICPC lawsuit is an allegation that restrictions placed on family visits amounted to an unlawful interference with his rights while in custody.

El-Rufai is asking the court to declare that his constitutional protections remain applicable despite his detention.

He alleged that the denial of access was particularly harmful because his family members had sought to provide him with food, medication and other personal necessities.

The former governor further accused ICPC officials of physically restraining and intimidating his wife and son during an incident on July 7.

He described the alleged conduct as an unjustified interference with his family relationships and asked the court to declare that the continued denial of family access without lawful authority was unconstitutional and illegal.

El-Rufai is also seeking an order directing the ICPC to provide him with “unhindered and reasonable access to members of his family and counsel” throughout his detention, subject to an earlier Federal High Court directive.

According to the former governor, the restrictions have caused him humiliation, emotional trauma, anxiety and psychological distress.

He alleged that the ICPC’s conduct was arbitrary and inconsistent with Sections 34, 37 and 46 of the Nigerian Constitution, as well as relevant provisions of the African Charter.

An affidavit filed in support of the case was deposed to by Mohammed Shaba, El-Rufai’s Principal Secretary.

Shaba stated that El-Rufai was being held at the ICPC office in Abuja and that his wife had regularly supplied him with food, clothing, medication and other personal necessities while he remained in custody.

The affidavit also referred to an earlier order issued by Justice R.M. Aikawa of the Federal High Court in Kaduna.

According to Shaba, the order directed the ICPC to allow access to lawyers and personal doctors whenever necessary.

He argued that the order demonstrated that detainees should not be held incommunicado and that the ICPC remained subject to judicial oversight concerning the conditions of detention.