NSCIA warns FG against weaponising state institutions in El-Rufai case

Secretary-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Prof. Is-haq Oloyede

NSCIA warns FG against weaponising state institutions in El-Rufai case

The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs breaks its silence on the former governor’s legal ordeal, citing “serious concerns” over possible sectarian agenda in the multiple prosecutions keeping El-Rufai in the spotlight.

ABUJA – The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) has raised the alarm over what it described as “an extraneous involvement of an underlying religious bias” in the ongoing prosecutions of former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai. The Islamic body, which had deliberately stayed out of the controversy until now, said recent developments had forced it to break its silence on the matter. In a statement signed by its Secretary-General and immediate-past Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, the NSCIA explained that its earlier restraint was based on its belief that El-Rufai’s prosecution, like those involving other political figures, was a standard judicial process and that the judiciary had the inherent capacity to uphold justice. However, the council said recent developments in the public domain had raised serious concerns that strongly suggested religious considerations might be creeping into a process that should be determined solely by law and evidence.

The NSCIA called on the Federal Government and the Judiciary to ensure that individuals with vested religious interests were strictly prevented from weaponising public institutions or the legal system to pursue what it described as a sectarian agenda against El-Rufai. “Consequently, the Council calls upon the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Judiciary to ensure that individuals with vested religious interests are strictly prevented from weaponizing public institutions or the legal system to execute a sectarian agenda against him,” the statement read. The council stressed that its position was anchored on the Islamic principle of justice and fairness, regardless of political, religious or personal considerations, and clarified that its intervention was not intended to interfere with the judicial process but to emphasise the need for justice to be administered without religious or sectarian considerations. The Islamic body also appealed to the general public to refrain from incendiary comments that could prejudice the fair trial of El-Rufai or exacerbate the security situation in the nation. “Furthermore, the Council appeals to the general public to refrain from incendiary comments that could prejudice the fair trial of Mallam El-Rufai or exacerbate the security situation in our nation,” the statement read.

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The NSCIA‘s intervention comes against the backdrop of a protracted legal battle that has kept El-Rufai in the spotlight since February 2026. The former governor is facing multiple prosecutions by different agencies on charges bordering on alleged abuse of office, money laundering, breach of national security, and wiretapping. The council’s decision to speak out followed comments by the Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd.), who accused El-Rufai of planning killings in Southern Kaduna while he was governor between 2015 and 2023. Musa had described the situation in Kaduna during El-Rufai’s administration as “toxic”, adding that many residents of Southern Kaduna remained unhappy with the former governor over killings recorded in the area.

El-Rufai, through his family, rejected the allegation and demanded that the minister withdraw the claim, with his eldest son, Mohammed Bello El-Rufai, giving Musa seven days to provide evidence supporting the allegation or publicly retract it. The controversy generated by Musa’s remarks has further widened the debate surrounding El-Rufai’s legal battles, with the NSCIA‘s intervention effectively placing the prosecution within a wider debate over the alleged politicisation and religious manipulation of state institutions. The Middle Belt Forum (MBF) has taken a sharply divergent position, backing the Defence Minister’s allegations and demanding an independent investigation into alleged killings and human rights abuses during El-Rufai’s administration, with possible prosecution before the International Criminal Court (ICC). The NSCIA’s intervention, which did not identify any individual or group it accused of pursuing a religious agenda, serves as a significant development in a case that has become a flashpoint for broader debates about judicial independence, political persecution, and religious neutrality in Nigeria’s legal system.

The council concluded its statement by praying for peace, stability and security in Nigeria. “May Almighty Allah grant peace, stability, and security to Nigeria,” it said.