Breaking: El-Rufai to Spend Another Night in Custody After Court Makes Pronouncement
- The Federal High Court in Kaduna adjourned the bail application of the former Kaduna governor, Nasir El-Rufai, to April 14
- El-Rufai had appeared before the court, alongside his co-defendant, Amadu Sule, for the proceedings on Monday, April 13
- The ICPC previously filed charges against him, including allegations of abuse of office and financial misappropriation
Nasir El-Rufai, the immediate past governor of Kaduna, has again been remanded in the custody of the security agency as the Federal High Court in the state adjourned the hearing of his bail application to Tuesday, April 14.
The former governor had appeared before the trial court amid heavy security as the hearing continued in the case instituted against him and his co-defendant, Amadu Sule, by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), over the allegation of financial misappropriation and abuse of office.
Source: Twitter
During the court hearing on Monday, April 13, the former governor entered a not-guilty plea to all nine charges levelled against him by the anti-graft agency on March 18, 2026.
On the other hand, the ICPC requested that the second defendant, Amadu Sule, be removed from the suit with all the charges against him, and the plea was granted by the judge.
Appeal court nullifies Kaduna High Court judgment
Earlier on March 17, the Court of Appeal had set aside the ruling of Justice Aikawa of the Federal High Court in Kaduna in the suit filed by Nasir El-Rufai against the State House of Assembly.
In the appellate judgment marked by CA/K/240/2024, the court held that the hearings at the trial court were not valid because of the breach of the rights of the former governor to a fair hearing.
The appellate court found that the lower court sat on July 18, 2024, without any evidence that El-Rufai was served with a hearing notice, thus denying him a chance to participate in the proceedings.
The Court of Appeal also held that the former governor was not allowed to respond to the counter-affidavit by the respondents, saying that such an omission was a violation of due process.
As a result of the findings, the court nullified the rulings by Justice Aikawa on July 30, 2024, and set them aside over what it described as a lack of jurisdiction, and ordered that the case should be returned to the Federal High Court and be reassigned to another judge.
El-Rufai's petition against the judge was based on the ruling of the Court of Appeal, with the former governor alleging 'gross bias, injustice, and denial of fair hearing'.
Source: Twitter
Analyst speaks on El-Rufai's trial
Meanwhile, Nasir El-Rufai's arrest has been considered to be within the scope of the law, according to a legal practitioner, Binzak Azeez, speaking exclusively in an interview with Legit.ng.
He maintained that the arrest and continued detention of the former governor were in line with Nigerian laws, unless a specific court order detailing otherwise was granted by a court in the country.
Proofreading by Funmilayo Aremu, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
