The Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday rejected an application from former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai. He wanted to change his bail conditions in the ongoing phone tapping case brought by the State Security Service (SSS).
Judge Joyce Abdulmalik said the original conditions of his bail were meant to make sure he shows up for trial. She found no reason to change those conditions.
This decision came after Mr El-Rufai filed a bail variation request during the trial. He asked the court to change part of the bail conditions that he could not fulfill despite his efforts.
The SSS filed charges against Mr El-Rufai in February after he claimed in an Arise Television interview that he listened to a phone call involving the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu. The agency brought him to court on 23 April facing five charges.
He received bail on 18 May for N100 million with one surety. One of the conditions for bail was that the surety must live in Maitama or Asokoro district in Abuja. They also needed to deposit the original Certificate of Occupancy of a property with the court.
The surety was required to be a federal civil servant of at least Grade Level 17 and show proof of salary payments for three months, confirmed by a bank letter.
The court also needed Mr El-Rufai to provide a letter from the chairperson of the Kaduna State Traditional Council and two other members.
While making the ruling on bail, the judge noted that the prosecution did not oppose Mr El-Rufai's bail application. She referenced Section 36(5) of the Nigerian Constitution, stating that everyone charged with a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
On Tuesday, Paul Erokoro, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), who represented Mr El-Rufai, told the court that his client could not meet some bail conditions. He said he filed for a variation to change those conditions.
Moving the application filed on 2 June, the senior advocate thanked the court for granting bail. But he pointed out that four of the bail conditions had not been met.
He explained that one unmet condition was having a Grade 17 officer as a surety and owning property in Maitama or Asokoro. Mr Erokoro said the defendant spoke to many directors, but they did not have properties in those areas. He added that salaries of directors were around N7.6 million before taxes, while properties in those areas cost billions.
He also reminded the judge about a Supreme Court ruling that said public officers should not serve as sureties. He asked the court to ease the conditions.
He argued that the prosecution had filed a counter-affidavit but did not oppose bail earlier. He said, "If they did not do that then, they cannot now insist that the bail must be on stringent conditions."
The prosecution lawyer, Oluwole Aladedoye, also SAN, opposed the application. He said the prosecution filed a counter-affidavit on 4 June. He argued that the court did not set a price for the properties required for a Grade 17 officer.
He stated that Mr El-Rufai had been a minister and governor, so he should not struggle to meet the conditions. He added that it is not for a defendant to suggest conditions that suit him.
On the Supreme Court ruling cited by Mr Erokoro, the prosecution lawyer referenced another authority, saying no two cases are alike. He encouraged the court to dismiss the application and called the defence's actions "unworthy."
In response, Mr Erokoro told the judge that emotions should not affect the court's decision. He insisted that lower courts must follow Supreme Court rulings. He said they were not proposing new conditions but requested a review so the defendant could meet them.
He argued that it was unfair for the defendant, who has not been convicted, to remain in custody for four months due to unmet bail conditions.
In her ruling, the judge said she had considered the conditions being challenged. She stated that the defence did not prove that properties in Asokoro and Maitama were valued between N3 billion and N20 billion, far above the N100 million bail bond.
The judge added that while the court did not make specific findings on property values when granting bail, the defence did not provide evidence for their claim about property prices.
The judge also talked about the need for Mr El-Rufai to provide an attestation from the chairperson of the Kwara State Traditional Rulers’ Council and two members. She said those conditions were reasonable given Mr El-Rufai's status.
In conclusion, the judge said the "application for variation of bail conditions lacked merit" and dismissed it. She then postponed the case until 22 September.
Meanwhile, Mr El-Rufai faces multiple corruption charges from his time as governor between 2015 and 2023. He was denied bail in another case at the Kaduna State High Court, where the judge remanded him in the custody of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC).
Before the application was discussed, the prosecution lawyer told the court that it did not plan to call more witnesses and closed its case. This came a day after the prosecution called a lawyer, Deji Adeyanju, as the second witness. Mr Adeyanju said he was at the Arise Television station when Mr El-Rufai gave the interview and said, "we listened to their call."
Mr Adeyanju added that he was there to take his turn for a live interview after Mr El-Rufai.
In response, Mr Erokoro said the defence would file a no-case submission, seeking to dismiss the charge without entering a defence.
The SSS charged Mr El-Rufai with phone tapping after his comments during the interview in February. He said he and someone else listened to a call between the NSA and another person.
Mr El-Rufai claimed that Mr Ribadu ordered his arrest during that call. The SSS filed cybercrime-related charges against him, accusing him of unlawful interception of communication and violating national security laws.
The SSS alleged that Mr El-Rufai intentionally interfered with the NSA's communication. It also accused him of obtaining classified information and aiding in the interception of calls without notifying security agencies.
The agency claimed he used technical equipment in a way that endangered public safety and national security, causing fear among Nigerians.
The charges were filed under the Designation and Protection of Critical National Information Infrastructure Order 2024 and the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention) Amendment Act.
On 23 April, the SSS brought Mr El-Rufai to court, where he pleaded not guilty to all five counts. The prosecution called two witnesses. The first, code-named APC, testified that security operatives monitored the television program and saved the recording for their investigation. Mr Adeyanju was the second and last witness in this case.
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