Members of the family of former Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, alongside his political allies and supporters, on Monday, staged a protest at the headquarters of the Department of State Services over what they described as his continued detention.
The development comes as the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission dismissed claims that El-Rufai is in poor health or being denied medical care in custody.
The agency insisted that, contrary to the claims by the African Democratic Congress and a viral video, the former governor is in good condition and has access to medical services in line with approved procedures.
A woman identified as El-Rufai’s wife, in a Hausa-language video interview, had alleged that ICPC officials denied her entry into the premises at about 7pm on Friday to deliver food to El-Rufai.
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.
El-Rufai, who has remained in the custody of the ICPC since February 18, 2026, after a brief period with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, has been involved in ongoing legal efforts to secure his release.
On Monday, family members, the senator representing Kaduna Central, Lawal Usman, and other loyalists, accused security authorities of moving El-Rufai in violation of subsisting court directives that, according to them, placed him under the custody of the ICPC.
El-Rufai’s second wife, Aisa, who addressed journalists outside the DSS facility, said the family was living in fear and under constant pressure from security surveillance and threats.
She said, “We now live in constant fear. Every day we get a threat — DSS, ICPC and police are coming to raid your house. You are being followed. Our phones are tapped.”
She narrated that earlier in the day, El-Rufai had appeared before Justice Joyce AbdulMalik of the Federal High Court, who granted bail and stood the matter down until 1 p.m.
According to her, during the court break, the former governor was briefly moved to a DSS facility — a move she said he resisted, insisting that existing Kaduna court orders required that he be remanded under ICPC custody.
“I remember him saying, ‘I am not going to step down because there are two court orders that the Kaduna court gave that I should be remanded in ICPC. Why are you bringing me here?’ He said that he is not a piece of furniture to be moved,” she recounted.
She questioned why he was again taken to the DSS instead of being returned to ICPC after the matter was fixed for continuation the next day.
As of the time she spoke to journalists, she said El-Rufai had refused to exit the vehicle that brought him to the DSS facility.
According to her, medical arrangements made through the ICPC had broken down despite initial agreements.
“When a doctor runs tests, you are expected to go back so that he can explain what the problem is. He was denied access to the doctor because, in their explanation, they said Malam was not aware that the doctor was coming.
The family demanded El-Rufai’s immediate return to ICPC custody in line with existing court orders, restoration of access to his personal physicians, and an end to what they described as psychological harassment.
“We are calling for his immediate release. He deserves to be granted bail based on self-recognition. What is happening is psychological harassment because of politics,” Adamu said.
El-Rufai’s son, Bello, alleged that the bail conditions imposed were deliberately structured to be difficult to meet, describing the entire process as politically motivated.
“Who keeps a person for 91 days, and why were the terms of the bail so stringent that it is practically impossible for anybody to meet? Why do you have to say that Kaduna State Council of Chiefs will have to give an attestation and that it has to be a government staff of level 17, with a house in Asokoro or Maitama?
“Which civil servant has N100m? What are we trying to do — are we trying to make people come out so that they can be targeted too?” he quizzed.
Director General of the El-Rufai Support Group Association, Dr Uche Dialla, also weighed in, describing the situation as a case of psychological torture and citing international human rights standards.
He said, “Torture is not just physical torture. When you take a man psychologically, he is in the custody of ICPC, goes to court, and immediately moves to another environment — that is psychological torture.
“His bag and toothbrush are with ICPC. El-Rufai is not there by choice. He was confined there by the orders of a court. Anything other than taking him back there would be deliberately torturing him.”
Also on Monday, the ADC raised concerns over El-Rufai’s continued detention, alleging that his health condition has worsened in custody amid claims that he has been denied access to medical care and adequate welfare.
In a statement issued in Abuja by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu of using state institutions to target opposition figures, describing the ex-governor as a “political prisoner.”
The party said reports from El-Rufai’s family indicated that authorities had denied him access to his doctors and prevented his wife from delivering food to him while in detention, despite an alleged court order granting him access to medical care.
“The African Democratic Congress is deeply concerned about the continued detention of Mallam Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai and his deteriorating health condition, following reports from his family alleging denial of medical access, restriction of food delivery, and disregard for a court order granting him access to his doctors.