El-Rufai Demands N10bn Damages from ICPC, Alleges Denial of Family Access During Detention

El-Rufai Demands N10bn Damages from ICPC, Alleges Denial of Family Access During Detention

Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has filed a fresh N10 billion fundamental rights suit against the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), alleging that the anti-graft agency has repeatedly denied his wife and son access to him while in custody, in violation of his constitutional rights. The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1852/2026, was filed on August 13, 2026, at the Federal High Court in Abuja through his lawyer, Ubong Akpan. The former governor also joined the ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu, and the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), as second and third respondents in the case.

El-Rufai, who has been in ICPC custody since February 2026, is seeking nine reliefs, including a declaration that his fundamental rights guaranteed under Part IV of the 1999 Constitution remain enforceable despite his detention. He contends that the repeated refusal to allow his family members access to him, particularly to provide food, medication, clothing and other personal necessities, without lawful justification or a court order, breached his rights under Sections 34 and 37 of the Constitution as well as Articles 5 and 18 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

According to court documents, El-Rufai alleged that on July 7, 2026, ICPC officers physically restrained and intimidated both his wife, Aichatou Asabe El-Rufai, and his son, Abba El-Rufai, when they attempted to visit him. He described the incident as an arbitrary interference with his spousal and filial relationships, insisting that the continued refusal to grant his family access subjected him to “humiliation, emotional trauma, anxiety and psychological distress.”

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The former governor is asking the court to declare that the alleged denial of access is unconstitutional, illegal, null and void, and to compel the respondents to grant him “unhindered and reasonable access to members of his family and counsel throughout the period of his detention.” He argues that the respondents have acted “arbitrarily, unlawfully and in a manner inconsistent with Sections 34, 37 and 46 of the Constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.”

In an affidavit filed in support of the suit, El-Rufai’s Principal Secretary, Mohammed Shaba, stated that the former governor is being detained at the ICPC headquarters in Abuja. Shaba disclosed that Justice R.M. Aikawa of the Federal High Court, Kaduna Division, had on April 1, 2026, issued an order directing the ICPC to allow defendants in the criminal case access to their lawyers and personal physicians whenever required. According to the affidavit, this order reflects the principle that detainees cannot be held incommunicado and that detention conditions remain subject to judicial supervision.

Shaba further noted that before the July 7 incident, Asabe had consistently visited her husband and delivered meals, medication and other personal items without obstruction, in accordance with the commission’s established visitation procedures. The affidavit maintained that El-Rufai continues to enjoy all protections guaranteed under the Constitution and the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015, including humane treatment and reasonable access to family members.

The fresh suit introduces a new legal battle alongside the criminal charges already pending against El-Rufai. The former governor, who served as Kaduna State governor between 2015 and 2023 and was also Minister of the Federal Capital Territory under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, is facing multiple charges before courts in Abuja and Kaduna, including allegations of money laundering, diversion of public funds, and complicity in the unlawful interception of phone communications of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.

This is not the first legal action El-Rufai has taken against the ICPC since his detention. In February 2026, he filed a separate N1 billion fundamental rights suit against the commission over the alleged unlawful search of his Abuja residence. That suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/345/2026, challenged the validity of a search warrant issued by a Chief Magistrate of the FCT Magistrates’ Court, which El-Rufai alleged was used to raid his residence. He sought declarations that the search violated his fundamental rights to dignity, personal liberty, fair hearing and privacy, as guaranteed by Sections 34, 35, 36 and 37 of the Constitution.

El-Rufai Demands N10bn Damages from ICPC, Alleges Denial of Family Access During Detention