El-Rufai: Atiku protests continued detention, bail ruling July 1

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Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar on Wednesday criticised the continued detention of former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, warning that excessively stringent bail conditions could undermine constitutional safeguards and erode public confidence in the justice system.

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The criticism comes as a Federal High Court in Kaduna fixed July 1, 2026, to rule on the ex-governor’s bail applications.

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The court adjourned until July 1 for ruling on the bail applications filed by El-Rufai and his co-defendant, Jimi Lawal, in an alleged corruption case instituted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission.

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El-Rufai, who appeared before two separate courts in Kaduna on Wednesday, is facing charges relating to alleged abuse of office, financial impropriety and money laundering.

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At the Federal High Court, presided over by Justice Hauwa’u Buhari, the immediate past governor, Lawal, a former Special Adviser during the El-Rufai administration, and several corporate entities were arraigned on an amended 11-count charge.

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El-Rufai pleaded not guilty to count one, while Lawal pleaded not guilty to counts six, seven and eight.

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A corporate entity, Singularity Network Security Limited, was arraigned on counts two, three, four, five, nine, ten and eleven.

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In all, El-Rufai, Lawal and five corporate entities are standing trial as defendants.

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After hearing arguments on the bail applications from both the prosecution and defence, Justice Buhari adjourned until July 1 for ruling.

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Earlier, El-Rufai arrived at the court premises at about 9:30 a.m. amid tight security.

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The former governor also appeared before the Kaduna State High Court for the continuation of the hearing in another ICPC case before Justice Darius Khobo, bordering on allegations of abuse of office and money laundering allegedly committed during his tenure between 2015 and 2023.

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Justice Khobo subsequently adjourned the matter until June 29 for further hearing.

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The Federal High Court case had earlier been adjourned to June 24 following the absence of two co-defendants at the previous sitting.

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El-Rufai has consistently denied all allegations, maintaining that actions taken during his administration were lawful and in the public interest.

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The ICPC, however, alleged that investigations uncovered irregularities in the handling of government funds and the award of contracts, resulting in the alleged diversion and misapplication of public resources.

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The PUNCH had reported that on April 14, 2026, Justice Rilwan Aikawa granted El-Rufai bail in the sum of N200m with two sureties, one of whom must be a serving or retired civil servant on Grade Level 15, while the other must be a recognised traditional ruler.

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The former governor later applied for a variation of the bail conditions, but the application was declined by the court.

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Reacting, Atiku, in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, described the court’s refusal to review El-Rufai’s bail conditions as troubling, arguing that conditions which are practically impossible to meet amount to a “constructive denial of bail.”

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He said, “The law is settled that an accused person remains innocent until proven guilty. Bail exists to preserve that constitutional protection. It was never designed to become a sophisticated instrument for punishment before conviction.”

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The former vice president questioned the rationale behind bail requirements that allegedly compel a defendant to produce a serving Grade Level 17 federal civil servant who owns verifiable property in Abuja’s highbrow Maitama or Asokoro districts, alongside other stringent conditions.

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“Nigerians are entitled to ask a simple question: is the objective to grant bail or to ensure that bail remains unattainable?” he asked.

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Atiku warned that the implications of such judicial decisions extend beyond El-Rufai, saying they could set precedents capable of affecting the liberties of ordinary citizens.

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“This is not merely about one individual. It is about the principles that underpin a democratic society governed by the rule of law.

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“Today it is El-Rufai. Tomorrow it could be any citizen whose liberty depends not on the law but on whether he can satisfy conditions that few Nigerians can ever meet,” he stated.

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He stressed that the judiciary remained the last line of defence against abuse of power and must ensure that its decisions inspire confidence in the fairness and accessibility of justice.

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“At a time when public trust in institutions is under unprecedented strain, the judiciary must be careful not to create the impression that justice is available only in theory but unreachable in practice.

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“Bail conditions should secure attendance in court, not guarantee continued incarceration,” he added.

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The former vice president also expressed concern over what he described as a growing perception that opposition figures and government critics were increasingly being drawn into legal and administrative disputes.

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“No democracy can thrive where citizens begin to suspect that legal processes are being used not merely to prosecute offences but to punish dissent.

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“The strength of a democracy is measured not by how it treats those in power but by how it treats those who challenge power,” he said.

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While emphasising that he was not commenting on the substance of the allegations against El-Rufai, Atiku insisted that constitutional rights must remain paramount.

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“The question of guilt or innocence is entirely for the courts to determine. What concerns every patriot is whether constitutional safeguards are being faithfully upheld.

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“The right to liberty, the presumption of innocence and the right to fair hearing are not privileges to be dispensed at convenience. They are constitutional guarantees,” he said.

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According to Atiku, when bail conditions become impossible to satisfy, detention effectively becomes punishment before trial.

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“There is a name for a situation where a citizen is told he has been granted bail but is simultaneously subjected to conditions that make his release virtually impossible. It is called a constructive denial of bail,” he said, urging institutions involved in the administration of justice to uphold fairness, proportionality and respect for fundamental rights.

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