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ICPC Denies Top ADC Leaders Access to Detained El‑Rufai, Cites Court Order Limiting Visitation to Family, Doctors and Lawyers Only
The ICPC has formally rejected a request by ADC leaders to visit detained former Kaduna Governor Nasir El‑Rufai, saying a court order permits only family, doctors and lawyers.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has formally declined a request from the African Democratic Congress (ADC) to visit former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El‑Rufai, who has been in the commission's custody since February 19, 2026 over allegations of financial misconduct linked to his eight‑year tenure. The decision, conveyed in an official letter dated May 21 and signed by the commission's Director of Operations, S. Yahaya, has drawn sharp criticism from the opposition party, which has accused the ICPC of political persecution and heavy‑handed intimidation.
The standoff came to a head on Friday, May 22, when a senior ADC delegation — comprising National Secretary and former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi, and Policy and Manifesto Committee Secretary Salihu Lukman — arrived at the ICPC headquarters in Abuja to visit El‑Rufai. Despite prior written communication with the commission, the party leaders were turned away.
In a statement issued shortly after the failed visit, Abdullahi described the scene that unfolded. "While we were at the premises awaiting a response to our request, the atmosphere suddenly became noticeably tense after no fewer than three truckloads of armed police officers arrived at the facility," he said. The ADC described the deployment as "entirely unnecessary and disproportionate to the peaceful presence of unarmed political leaders," and argued that it reinforced the impression that state institutions were being used "as instruments of political pressure and psychological intimidation against dissenting voices."
The ICPC has rejected the ADC's characterisation of events. Spokesman Okor Odey told journalists that the commission had formally replied to the ADC before the visit. "They wrote to us saying that they wanted to come and visit El‑Rufai… We got their letter on the 20th or thereabouts and replied to them on the 21st that they should not come because the court order was specific," Odey said. He stressed that access to the former governor is strictly limited by judicial directive. "The access is limited to the category of his immediate family members, his legal counsel and his medical doctors. Based on the court order… we are not able to grant them their request to visit."
Odey also dismissed claims that the police presence at the commission's gate was anything out of the ordinary. "Usually, you know that we have a detachment of mobile policemen at the gate all the time. Sometimes you see their trucks parked there. Those are the things they saw that they said we brought three trailers of police," he explained.
The legal basis for the ICPC's position is set out in the May 21 letter. El‑Rufai is currently standing trial before two courts — the Kaduna State High Court and the Federal High Court, both sitting in Kaduna — on an amended nine‑count charge of fraud and abuse of office. The former governor was arraigned on April 13, 2026, following an indictment by the Kaduna State House of Assembly in 2024 over the alleged diversion of N423 billion in public funds.
"Mallam Nasir El‑Rufai is standing trial before two courts… Though the defendant is in the commission's custody by order of both courts, the court is fully seized of the matter. The court has granted access to the defendant to his family, doctors and counsels. These are the only category of persons granted access," the ICPC letter stated.
The ADC, however, has refused to accept the commission's reasoning. In its statement, the party insisted that El‑Rufai "voluntarily submitted himself to the authorities" and "is not a fugitive." The party warned that the restrictions surrounding his detention were fuelling public suspicion and demanded the ICPC "immediately grant unrestricted access to Mallam El‑Rufai by his family, doctors, lawyers, and leaders of his political party."
The party's frustration has been compounded by allegations from El‑Rufai's family. His son, Bello, recently accused the ICPC of preventing his father's personal doctor from visiting him, despite a court order granting unrestricted medical access. The commission has dismissed those claims as "false and misleading."
The clash occurs at a politically sensitive moment. El‑Rufai, a founding member of the APC and former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, has become one of the most vocal critics of President Bola Tinubu's administration and has aligned himself with the opposition ADC ahead of the 2027 elections. His continued detention, now entering its fourth month, has become a rallying point for opposition figures who see it as part of a broader pattern of using state institutions against political opponents.
For now, the court order stands. And as long as it does, the doors of the ICPC detention facility will remain closed to the ADC — no matter how many truckloads of police are stationed at the gate.
Stay tuned to Unuevbo TV for more on El‑Rufai's trial, the ADC's response, and the legal and political battles shaping the pre‑election landscape.
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