On Monday, Nasir el-Rufai’s family accused the Department of State Services (DSS) of detaining the former governor of Kaduna in violation of ongoing court orders.
After el-Rufai was purportedly placed under DSS custody, the family demonstrated outside the DSS headquarters in Abuja.
The former governor’s second wife, Asia el-Rufai, claimed that the family had experienced psychological distress, fear, and threats as a result of the development.
We now live in constant fear. Every day we get a threat — DSS is coming to raid your house, ICPC is coming to raid your house, police are coming to raid your house. You are being followed. Our phones are tapped,” she said.
According to Asia, el-Rufai had previously appeared before federal high court judge Joyce AbdulMalik, who granted him bail and postponed the case until 11 pm.
She claimed that despite two court orders stating that the former governor should stay under the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission’s (ICPC) custody, he was momentarily brought to the DSS facility during the break.
She claims that el-Rufai objected to the relocation and asked why he was being moved to the DSS facility.
“I am not going to step down because the Kaduna court issued two court orders that I should be remanded in the ICPC,” he told them. You’re bringing me here, but why? “I am not furniture to be moved,” he remarked.
According to Asia, after the afternoon court session, El-Rufai was taken back to the ICPC.
According to her, the former governor would not get out of the car that was transporting him to the facility.
“You had an agreement, so if you want to take me into DSS custody, you will have to physically force me to do this,” she said.
She stated that the judge had instructed the DSS and ICPC to determine which organization would detain the former governor while legal proceedings were ongoing.
“We informed her that there are subsisting orders when Justice AbdulMalik suggested that I go to DSS in the first instance,” she stated.
“Let DSS and ICPC decide who will keep him, and you people decided they are keeping him with ICPC,” she said. What has altered?
Asia further claimed that despite a Kaduna High Court order allowing him unrestricted access to attorneys and doctors, el-Rufai, who she claimed had spent 91 days in custody, had been denied access to his personal doctors.
She said the ICPC’s in-house doctor had recommended medical tests for the former governor and agreed that his doctors would later discuss the results with him.
According to her, the arrangement was later disregarded.
You’re supposed to see the doctor again after you’ve had tests done so he can explain what’s wrong,” she said.
According to their own explanation, Malam was unaware of the doctor’s arrival, which is why he was refused access to the physician. When I asked Malam, he replied that no one had told him.
The family called for the immediate return of el-Rufai to ICPC custody in accordance with current court orders, the restoration of his doctors’ access, and an end to what they called psychological torture.
The former governor’s son and member of the House of Representatives, Bello el-Rufai, characterized the situation as politically motivated.
He contended that his father’s bail requirements were “deliberately impossible” to fulfill.
“Who holds someone for ninety-one days? He asked, “Why were the terms of the bail so strict that they are practically impossible for anybody to meet?”
Why is it necessary for the Kaduna State Council of Chiefs to provide an attestation? Why do we insist that it must be a level 17 government employee who resides in Asokoro or Maitama?
“Who among the civil servants has N100 million? Are we attempting to get people to come out so they can also be targeted?
Bello also stated that he planned to file a formal petition with the House of Representatives regarding the ICPC’s alleged false statements.
