El-Rufai’s detention has nothing to do with politics, says ICPC

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has denied allegations that the detention and trial of former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir  El-Rufai, were politically motivated.

It insisted that the anti-graft agency was only carrying out its statutory mandate.

The ICPC also dismissed claims that El-Rufai was denied access to medical care or food while in custody, stating that the former governor had been allowed to see doctors of his choice and receive visits from family members within the agency’s approved access hours.

Speaking during a media briefing at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja on Monday, the ICPC Deputy Director and Head of Media and Public Communications, John Odey, said El-Rufai remained in custody because he had yet to fulfil his court-approved bail conditions.

“The court granted him bail and he is yet to meet his bail conditions. If he meets his bail conditions today, I can assure you that the ICPC will let him go. So we are not keeping him,” Odey said.

He added that the corruption charges against the former governor were already before the court and should not be interpreted through a political lens.

“The ICPC does not play politics. The law setting up the ICPC is very clear. The reason we have El-Rufai with us is because there were allegations made against him, charges referred against him. He has been arraigned in court. He is undergoing trial, so he is a defendant in those matters. It is strictly a judicial matter. It has nothing to do with politics,” he said.

Reacting on his health status, he said, “El-Rufai is in the custody of the ICPC and he is in good health.”

The Commission’s clarification followed widespread circulation of a Hausa-language video interview in which a woman identified as El-Rufai’s wife alleged that ICPC officials denied her entry into the premises at about 7pm on Friday to deliver food to her husband.

She also accused the Commission of violating a court order granting family members access to the former governor and alleged that he was being denied food.

However, the ICPC described the allegations as “false and misleading,” explaining that its long-standing access control protocol permits visits only between 9am and 6:30pm.

According to the Commission, the former governor’s family had previously complied with the access rules and had delivered food to him multiple times on the same day the allegations were made.

“The woman herself admitted in the same video that she had delivered both breakfast and lunch to her husband earlier that day, thereby contradicting the allegation that the ICPC denied him access to food,” Odey stated.

The Commission said visitor records showed that one of El-Rufai’s wives and a housemaid visited him no fewer than three times between 10:30am and 5:30pm on the day in question.

On the allegation that medical personnel were denied access to the former governor, the ICPC said it only requested proper identification and confirmation from El-Rufai before granting supervised access, describing the measure as a standard security procedure.

The Commission further disclosed that El-Rufai had, in the preceding week, been taken by ICPC officials to visit both his dentist and eye doctor on separate occasions.

“He has been allowed to go see the doctors of his choice. Before this incident, he went twice last week and the ICPC took him there. He went and came back twice and he has access to our in-house medical facility,” Odey said.

The anti-graft agency also stressed that El-Rufai’s status as a high-profile politically exposed person necessitated heightened security measures for his safety and that of other detainees.

It accused some persons of attempting to “dramatise” the situation in order to pressure the Commission into disregarding its institutional procedures.

“The ICPC remains focused on its mandate and will not compromise its security protocols under any circumstances,” the Commission added.