Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has instituted a fresh N10 billion fundamental rights suit against the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), accusing the agency of unlawfully restricting his family from visiting him in detention.
El-Rufai filed the suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja on August 13, 2026, through his lawyer, Ubong Akpan. He is seeking damages over what he described as the denial of access to his wife, Aichatou Asabe, and his son, Abba El-Rufai.
The ICPC chairman and the Attorney-General of the Federation were also joined as defendants in the case.
The former governor is asking the court to declare that his constitutional rights remain protected despite his detention. He also wants an order compelling the ICPC to provide him with reasonable and unhindered access to his family and legal representatives throughout the period of his detention.
El-Rufai alleged that the restrictions prevented his wife and son from bringing him food, medication and other essential items. He further claimed that ICPC officials physically restrained and intimidated the two family members during an incident on July 7.
According to court documents, the former governor argued that the alleged restrictions amounted to unlawful interference with his dignity, privacy and family relationships, contrary to provisions of the 1999 Constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
He also claimed that the alleged treatment had subjected him to humiliation, emotional distress, anxiety and psychological trauma.
In an affidavit filed in support of the suit, El-Rufai’s Principal Secretary, Mohammed Shaba, said his wife had previously been responsible for providing him with food, clothing, medication and other necessities during his detention.
Shaba further referred to an earlier order issued by Justice R.M. Aikawa of the Federal High Court in Kaduna on April 1, directing the ICPC to allow detainees access to their lawyers and personal physicians whenever necessary.
He argued that the order demonstrated that detainees should not be kept incommunicado and that the conditions of their detention remain subject to judicial oversight.
The latest case is one of several legal actions El-Rufai has brought against the ICPC since the commission commenced investigations involving him.
