• ADC accuses ICPC of denying party leaders access to Nasir El-Rufai in detention
• The party claims three truckloads of armed police officers were deployed during the visit
• The party demands unrestricted access to El-Rufai by family, lawyers, doctors, and party officials

The opposition party, the African Democratic Congress, has accused the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission of blocking its leaders from meeting former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, who is currently being held by the anti-graft agency.

In a statement released on Friday, May 22, by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC alleged that security operatives heavily militarised the premises of the ICPC headquarters in Abuja during the attempted visit.

According to the statement, the party’s National Secretary, Rauf Aregbesola, Abdullahi, and the Secretary of the ADC Policy and Manifesto Committee, Salihu Lukman, had gone to the commission’s office to see El-Rufai after formally notifying the agency ahead of time.

The party claimed the delegation was denied access to the former governor “without any reasonable explanation.”

ADC further alleged that tension escalated at the premises after “no fewer than three truckloads of armed police officers” arrived while the party leaders waited for a response from the commission.

The statement described the security deployment as excessive, arguing that the delegation was peaceful and posed no threat.

“Earlier today, alongside the National Secretary of our party, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, and the Secretary of the ADC Policy and Manifesto Committee, Mallam Salihu Lukman, we visited the headquarters of the ICPC in Abuja to see Mallam El-Rufai. Despite prior communication and formal requests, we were denied access without any reasonable explanation,” Abdullahi stated.

The party added, “The heavy deployment, which appeared entirely unnecessary and disproportionate to the peaceful presence of unarmed political leaders, created the unmistakable impression that the authorities feared that the mere presence of opposition leaders at the Commission could trigger public outrage.”

ADC condemned what it called an intimidating show of force and accused authorities of using public institutions to suppress opposition voices.

“It is deeply troubling that a simple request by senior party officials to visit a detained colleague was met, not with professionalism, but with a show of force more suited to the suppression of civil unrest,” the statement added.

The opposition party insisted that El-Rufai voluntarily honoured the agency’s invitation and should be granted humane treatment, including access to medical care, family members, lawyers, and party officials.

The party also warned against what it described as the “harassment and calculated humiliation” of one of its prominent members.

Meanwhile, El-Rufai’s son, Bello El-Rufai, had earlier alleged in a post on X that ICPC officials denied the former governor access to both his family and personal doctor despite an existing court order permitting unrestricted medical access.

Court grants El-Rufai N100m bail over alleged Ribadu phone interception

Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai was granted bail in the sum of N100 million by a Federal High Court in Abuja over allegations linked to the unlawful interception of communications involving National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu.

The bail was tied to strict conditions, including a high-ranking federal civil servant as surety. The court also ordered El-Rufai to surrender all international passports and must report monthly to DSS headquarters pending trial.