Nasir El-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna State, has filed a N10 billion lawsuit against the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) over the alleged denial of access to his wife and son while in detention.
El-Rufai filed the suit through his lawyer, Ubong Akpan, at the Federal High Court in Abuja. He joined ICPC Chairman Musa Aliyu and Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) Lateef Fagbemi as the second and third defendants.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1852/2026, was filed on August 13 and sighted by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday.
El-Rufai alleges violation of family rights
In the suit, the former governor is seeking nine reliefs, including a declaration that his fundamental rights under Part IV of the 1999 Constitution remain in force despite his detention.
El-Rufai alleged that the ICPC repeatedly prevented his wife, Aichatou Asabe, and son, Abba el-Rufai, from visiting him and providing food, medication and other necessities.
He argued that the alleged denial violated his rights to dignity and private and family life guaranteed under sections 34 and 37 of the Constitution, as well as Articles 5 and 18 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
El-Rufai also asked the court to declare that the alleged physical restraint, intimidation and treatment of Asabe and Abba by ICPC officers on July 7 amounted to a violation of his fundamental rights.
He alleged that the continued denial of access to his family was unconstitutional, illegal, null and void.
The former governor is seeking an order directing the respondents to grant him “unhindered and reasonable access” to his family members and counsel throughout his detention, in line with an earlier order of the Federal High Court.
El-Rufai alleged that despite the court order permitting access to his family and lawyers, the ICPC prevented his wife and son from seeing him without justification.
He said the alleged action had subjected him to humiliation, emotional trauma, anxiety and psychological distress, describing the respondents’ conduct as an unjustifiable interference with his dignity and family life.
Former governor cites court order
In an affidavit filed in support of the suit, Mohammed Shaba, El-Rufai’s principal secretary, said the former governor was being detained at the ICPC office in Abuja.
Shaba said the facts contained in the affidavit were supplied to him by Asabe on July 12.
According to him, Asabe had been responsible for providing her husband with food, clothing, medication and other personal necessities since his detention.
Shaba said El-Rufai is the first defendant in charge number FHC/KD/73C/2025, pending before the Federal High Court in Kaduna, where the Federal Republic of Nigeria is the complainant.
He said Justice R. M. Aikawa of the Kaduna division of the Federal High Court ordered the ICPC on April 1 to allow the defendants access to their counsel and personal physicians whenever required.
Shaba argued that the order reflected the principle that detainees should not be held incommunicado and that the ICPC remains subject to judicial oversight over detention conditions.
He further argued that El-Rufai retains his fundamental rights under the Constitution and the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, including humane treatment and reasonable access to family members.
Shaba said Asabe had regularly visited her husband and delivered meals and other items to him before July 7 without obstruction, in accordance with the ICPC’s established visiting procedures.
