Aichatou el-Rufai, wife of Nasir el-Rufai, has issued a pre-action notice to the chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), demanding N2 billion in damages over alleged defamatory statements made against her by the commission.
The development followed allegations by Mohammed Bello that ICPC operatives denied his father access to medical and family care while in detention on Friday.
Bello claimed the anti-graft agency violated a court order granting the former governor “unrestricted access to his doctors”.
He also alleged that el-Rufai was prevented from seeing Aichatou, his second wife, who had brought him his evening meal.
Responding to the allegations on Monday, the ICPC dismissed claims of inhumane treatment and denial of access to el-Rufai as “false and misleading”.
J. Okor Odey, spokesperson of the commission, said in a statement that the agency’s access control policy permits visits between 9:00 am and 6:30 pm and applies to all detainees and visitors.
Odey said relatives of suspects in ICPC custody are usually informed of the visitation procedures and had complied with them prior to the incident.
He added that one of el-Rufai’s wives and a housemaid had previously been allowed access on at least three occasions between 10:30 am and 5:30 pm to deliver food to the former governor.
“Commission notes the wide circulation of a video interview since 10:00 pm on Friday, 15 May 2026. In that interview, conducted in the Hausa language and broadcast across several media platforms, a woman who identified herself as the wife of a defendant currently remanded in ICPC custody alleged that Commission operatives denied her entry into the premises at 7:00 pm to deliver food to her husband,” the statement reads.
“She further alleged that the ICPC was in violation of a court order permitting family access to the defendant, and that her husband was being denied food. The ICPC wishes to state categorically that these claims are false and misleading.”
In a letter addressed to the commission, lawyers representing Aichatou el-Rufai argued that portions of the statement issued by the ICPC spokesperson were defamatory and damaging to their client’s reputation.
The legal team said the commission’s reference to her as “a woman who identified herself as the wife of a defendant” cast doubt on her status as the lawful spouse of the former governor.
They also argued that describing her allegations as “false and misleading” portrayed her as dishonest and deceptive.
According to the lawyers, the commission’s suggestion that she violated visitation procedures at the ICPC headquarters painted her as someone who disregards institutional rules.
The legal team further faulted aspects of the statement which they said implied that Aichatou contradicted herself regarding claims that her husband was denied food in custody.
They also accused the commission of portraying her actions as an attempt to create a media spectacle in order to bypass official procedures.
The lawyers stated that the publication had circulated widely across local and international media platforms, exposing their client to ridicule, embarrassment and reputational damage.
They described her as a woman of “unblemished character” and accused the anti-graft agency of unfairly targeting a private citizen through its official communication channels.
The legal team demanded an immediate retraction of the statements and a public apology to their client.
They requested that the apology be published in at least three national newspapers and across the commission’s digital and social media platforms.
The notice also seeks N2 billion in general, aggravated and exemplary damages over the alleged defamatory publication.
The lawyers further demanded a written undertaking from the commission assuring that no similar statements would be made about el-Rufai’s second wife in future.
The ICPC was given 14 days to comply with the demands or face legal action.