The family of former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has accused the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission of denying him access to food and medical care while in detention.
The allegation was contained in a statement issued on Friday by his son, Mohammed El-Rufai, a member of the House of Representatives, who described the development as “an outright assault on the rule of law” and a violation of the former governor’s constitutional rights.
According to Mohammed, two incidents occurred at the ICPC headquarters involving El-Rufai’s personal doctor and his wife, Aichatou.
He said the former governor’s doctor visited the commission’s office around 3 p.m. on Thursday to discuss the outcome of recent medical tests conducted on El-Rufai, but was denied access by officials of the anti-graft agency.
The family alleged that ICPC operatives insisted that a written approval from the commission’s chairman was required before the doctor could see him, despite a subsisting court order granting El-Rufai unrestricted access to his medical team.
The statement further claimed that El-Rufai’s wife arrived at the ICPC office around 7 p.m. with his evening meal but was also turned back by security personnel.
According to the family, officials told her they had been directed not to allow food deliveries after 6:30 p.m.
In a video shared on social media, Mrs El-Rufai was seen standing outside the ICPC office with a flask of food while explaining that she had been denied access to her husband.
“I am here since 7 p.m. and the security at the ICPC denied me access to my husband,” she said in the video.
“Here is his food. They said they have been ordered not to allow me access to the building.”
Reacting to the development, Mohammed said the restriction was arbitrary and unjustifiable, insisting that no lawful detention permits the denial of medical care or family access.
“These acts are an outright assault on the rule of law and a clear violation of our father’s constitutional and human rights,” he said.
“We demand that all his constitutional rights be fully respected. We will no longer accept this pattern of intimidation dressed up as protocol.”
El-Rufai was arrested by ICPC operatives as part of an investigation into alleged financial improprieties and abuse of office linked to contracts and public expenditure during his tenure as Kaduna State governor between 2015 and 2023.
The anti-corruption agency later obtained a remand order keeping him in custody pending the conclusion of investigations.
His arrest has continued to generate political and legal controversy, with his supporters describing it as politically motivated, while critics insist he should answer questions relating to his administration’s management of state finances.
Since his detention, his family and associates have repeatedly raised concerns over his health and treatment in custody.
The Federal High Court had reportedly ordered that El-Rufai be granted access to his doctors and legal team while in detention.
Efforts to obtain an official response from the ICPC were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report, as calls to the commission’s publicly available contact numbers went unanswered and no official statement had been issued on the allegations.