Nasir El-Rufai appeared before the Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday as proceedings continued in his alleged treason and national security case.
A prosecution witness informed the court that the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, alongside the chairman of the ICPC, confirmed the authenticity of a conversation mentioned by El-Rufai during a televised interview.
During the hearing, prosecutors played a 43-minute Arise Television interview in which the former Kaduna governor allegedly claimed that a private discussion involving Ribadu had been intercepted and forwarded to him. El-Rufai is currently facing an amended five-count charge linked to the alleged unlawful interception of communications and actions said to threaten national security under the Cybercrimes Amendment Act 2024.
The witness told the court that investigators later questioned Ribadu, who reportedly confirmed that the conversation took place between himself and the ICPC chairman. The anti-corruption agency’s chairman also reportedly verified the discussion after viewing parts of the interview.
According to the prosecution, El-Rufai defended the alleged interception during the broadcast, arguing that governments commonly monitor communications.
The court also heard that Arise TV presenter Charles Aniagolu, activist lawyer Deji Adeyanju, and cameraman Ugochukwu Agalayana were invited for questioning as part of the investigation.
Investigators claimed Aniagolu confirmed that El-Rufai admitted someone intercepted the conversation and passed it to him, while maintaining that such practices were common among governments. Statements obtained from Aniagolu and Adeyanju were admitted as Exhibits C, C1 and E without objection from the defence.
Another statement from Agalayana was accepted as Exhibit D after he confirmed he arranged the recording equipment used for the interview, although he stated he did not pay attention to the discussion itself.
The prosecution witness further stated that investigators interpreted El-Rufai’s comments as an “open confession” regarding the alleged interception of the NSA’s conversation. He added that the investigation team believed the act could undermine national security and subsequently recommended prosecution.
A preliminary investigation report submitted by the prosecution was admitted as Exhibit F.
However, during cross-examination, defence counsel Chief Paul Erokoro (SAN) highlighted that investigators neither examined the NSA’s communication devices nor carried out forensic analysis or IP tracing connected to the alleged interception.
Despite this, the witness insisted such measures were unnecessary after Ribadu reportedly confirmed the conversation’s authenticity. He also acknowledged that El-Rufai never directly stated that he personally intercepted the communication.
The witness nevertheless maintained that the former governor repeatedly upheld the claim that the conversation had been tapped and sent to him.
When questioned on whether El-Rufai may simply have been exaggerating during a heated television appearance, the witness replied that he viewed the former governor as “a man of integrity” and believed he meant his remarks.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik adjourned the matter until 22 and 23 June.
