The Department of State Services (DSS) has arraigned former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, over allegations that he accessed a private telephone conversation involving the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
El-Rufai, who also served as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, is facing a five-count amended charge before a Federal High Court in Abuja.
At the start of proceedings on Thursday, the prosecution informed the court that the initial three-count charge had been expanded to five counts. Following this, the presiding judge, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, struck out the earlier charges.
The former governor pleaded not guilty to all counts.
After the plea, counsel to the DSS, Oluwole Aladeloye, urged the court to fix dates for trial. However, defence counsel, Oluwole Iyamu, opposed the request, stating that he needed time to consult with his client, who he said had been in the custody of multiple security agencies.
Iyamu also told the court that a bail application had been filed on February 17, along with a further affidavit submitted recently.
Justice Abdulmalik, however, said the additional affidavit was not in her records, noting that the defence should have ensured proper filing instead of engaging in what she described as unnecessary distractions in court.
The defence lawyer denied inviting any media personnel, after which the judge stood down the case to allow the issue surrounding the affidavit to be resolved.
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The case stems from comments made by El-Rufai during a February interview on Prime Time, an Arise Television programme, where he alleged that a conversation involving Ribadu had been intercepted.
“He made the call because we listened to their calls. The government thinks they are the only ones that listen to calls but we also have our ways. He made the call and gave the order,” el-Rufai had said.
“Someone tapped his phone. The government listens to our calls all the time without a court order. Someone tapped his phone and told us that he gave the order.”