Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has urged world leaders, human rights groups, and major news organizations to step in regarding his extended imprisonment, stressing that he is entitled to a fair legal process and justice.
On October 30—the 256th day of his detention—El-Rufai made his plea through a post on X, explicitly drawing the attention of U.S. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron to his case.
He also tagged the United Nations, UN Human Rights Council, Amnesty International, the European Union, African Union, White House, British government, and several international media organisations, including CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera, The New York Times, and The Economist. Under the hashtag #FairTrial, El-Rufai emphasized that receiving a fair trial is a basic human right, not a concession or special treatment.
“A fair trial is not an act of mercy. It is not a privilege. It is a fundamental human right,” he stated.
The international appeal comes amid mounting legal challenges facing El-Rufai, whose detention has been prolonged by separate criminal investigations and court proceedings involving allegations of unlawful telephone interception, corruption and financial misconduct.
Legal Challenges
The Abuja Federal High Court rejected El-Rufai’s argument that the case against him lacked merit, a case brought by the Department of State Services (DSS) over alleged unauthorized monitoring of National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu’s phone calls.
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Judge Joyce Abdulmalik ruled on October 26 that the prosecution had provided enough evidence to compel El-Rufai to present his defense if he intended to do so.
The legal dispute stems from an interview El-Rufai gave to Arise Television in February, where he discussed supposed surveillance of Ribadu’s conversations.
El-Rufai is also facing separate corruption and financial misconduct proceedings instituted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) over transactions and decisions taken during his eight-year administration of Kaduna State between 2015 and 2023.
Corruption Allegations
In March, the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) announced it had filed charges against the former governor in both the Federal High Court and the Kaduna State High Court.
The allegations include money laundering, conversion and possession of public property, abuse of office, fraud and conferring undue advantage.
The ICPC’s probe is tied to a complaint from the Kaduna State House of Assembly, which accused El-Rufai’s administration of financial mismanagement totaling roughly N432 billion.
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El-Rufai’s detention began in February after he honoured an invitation from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), before he was subsequently transferred to the ICPC on February 18, 2026.
The ICPC said his detention was connected to investigations into allegations of money laundering and abuse of office, maintaining that the remand orders and subsequent extensions were authorised by a court.
Efforts by the former governor to secure bail have also suffered setbacks, with the Court of Appeal sitting in Kaduna on October 9 dismissing his challenge against the refusal of his second bail application.
El-Rufai, a prominent opposition figure and member of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has repeatedly stated that the circumstances surrounding his arrest and prosecution are politically motivated.
His latest appeal to international institutions adds a diplomatic and human rights dimension to the legal battles, although the intervention he seeks does not alter the ongoing judicial proceedings or determine the outcome of the cases against him.
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