El-Rufai Denies Violating Court Order, Demands Physician's Release

Former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai has refuted allegations of violating a court order, asserting that his actions were within the bounds of an existing court-sanctioned medical visit. The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) had accused El-Rufai and his personal physician, Prof. Bello Abubakar, of abusing medical visit privileges and breaching a court order.

In a statement released by his Media Adviser, Muyiwa Adekeye, El-Rufai denied the ICPC's account as inaccurate and misleading. He explained that his failure to appear in court on July 6 stemmed from an ongoing medical condition, not an attempt to evade trial. The statement detailed that Prof. Abubakar had visited the ICPC facility the previous week but was allegedly denied access to his patient after a prolonged wait.

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It was against this background, an unresolved medical need, a documented denial of access to his physician the week before, and Malam El-Rufai’s continuing ill health, that the scheduled trip to Kaduna on 6th July became untenable. He did receivenot travel that day for that reason.

Following this denial of access, El-Rufai's family formally requested that he be taken to the National Hospital, Abuja, for a consultation with his physician on July 7. This request had reportedly been communicated to the hospital prior to the family's awareness of the July 6 court sitting in Kaduna. El-Rufai's legal team further argued that the ICPC was aware of this outstanding medical request, questioning the commission's assertion that he had no immediate medical complaints or deliberately avoided court.

El-Rufai's rebuttal also contested the claim of breaching a court order during his hospital visit. His lawyers maintained that the sole applicable order was issued by Justice R. M. Aikawa on April 1, 2026, which grants him access to medical care while in custody. They argued that this order does not restrict who he can see during such medical access. The statement suggested the ICPC complied with its legal obligations by facilitating the hospital visit and therefore could not claim it constituted a violation of the same order.

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The only order in existence on this subject is the order of Justice Aikawa of 1st April 2026. That order directs that Malam El-Rufai be afforded access to medical care in custody; it does not regulate, restrict, or impose conditions on who may see or be seen by him while that access is being exercised.