Nigeria’s former vice president Atiku Abubakar has demanded the immediate release of ex-Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai ahead of the Eid-el-Kabir celebrations, describing his continued detention as “cruel, unjustifiable, and deeply troubling” and a politically motivated assault on civil liberties.
In a statement issued on Friday through his senior special assistant on public communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku — a senior figure in the African Democratic Congress — said the timing of El-Rufai’s detention, coinciding with one of Islam’s most sacred holidays, made the situation all the more unconscionable.
“At a time when millions of Muslims across Nigeria and around the world are preparing to celebrate Eid-el-Kabir — a sacred season of sacrifice, compassion, forgiveness, and family reunion — it would be unconscionable for any government to weaponise state power in a manner that denies a citizen his liberty without just cause,” he said, adding that the circumstances raised “legitimate concerns about political persecution.”
El-Rufai, who governed Kaduna State from 2015 to 2023 and was once a prominent figure in the ruling All Progressives Congress before defecting, is currently facing a 10-count charge before Justice Rilwan Aikawa of the Federal High Court in Kaduna. The charges, brought by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, relate to alleged money laundering and the conversion and possession of proceeds of corruption under the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022. He and his co-defendant, Joel Adoga, have both pleaded not guilty. Last week, the court granted El-Rufai access to medical treatment while in custody, following a plea by his defence counsel.
Atiku’s intervention stops short of denying the legitimacy of any legal process, but insists on transparency. If the detention rests on solid legal ground, he argued, authorities have an obligation to demonstrate that clearly to the Nigerian public rather than allow suspicions of political score-settling to fester.
“Democracy does not grant the government the licence to punish dissent, settle political scores, or deploy coercive institutions as instruments of intimidation,” he said. “The credibility of any democracy is measured not by how it treats loyalists, but by how it treats perceived opponents.”
The statement reflects a broader unease among opposition figures and civil society actors about the use of anti-corruption agencies — long criticised for selective application — against politicians who have fallen out of favour with those in power. El-Rufai’s prosecution has drawn particular attention given his history as a close ally of President Bola Tinubu before their political rupture.
Atiku urged federal authorities and the Kaduna State government to “rise above political bitterness and act in the interest of justice, peace, and national cohesion,” framing El-Rufai’s release not merely as a matter of individual rights but as a test of Nigeria’s democratic character.
