By Ify Okoli
The African Democratic Congress, ADC, has accused the ruling
All Progressives Congress, APC, of deliberately keeping former Kaduna State
Governor Nasir El-Rufai in detention to weaken the opposition ahead of
Nigeria’s 2027 elections.
ADC National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi said the
opposition believes the Federal Government has no intention of releasing
El-Rufai before the election, alleging that his continued detention would limit
the opposition’s political strength.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today,
Abdullahi said the ADC believed the government was concerned about the
influence El-Rufai could regain if released, particularly because of his
experience and role in opposition politics.
“What I can tell you is that the thinking within the ADC is
that the APC government has concluded that they will not release Malam Nasir
El-Rufai until after the elections,” Abdullahi said.
He claimed the opposition believed El-Rufai’s release would
strengthen its political position and allow the former governor to raise issues
the ruling party would prefer voters not to revisit during the 2027 campaign.
Abdullahi said the ADC was therefore concerned that legal
proceedings could be used to keep El-Rufai in custody for as long as possible,
rather than allowing the former governor to participate fully in opposition
activities.
The ADC spokesman also raised concerns about El-Rufai’s
health, saying his family had reported that doctors at the National Hospital
recommended close medical observation because of his deteriorating condition.
He warned that President Bola Tinubu would be held
personally responsible if anything happened to El-Rufai while he remained in
detention, describing the former governor as a political prisoner.
“If anything happens to Malam Nasir El-Rufai in detention,
President Bola Tinubu will be held personally responsible because the buck
stops at his table,” Abdullahi said.
The ADC spokesman stressed that his party did not oppose
prosecution where there was a legitimate case to answer. His objection, he
said, was to prolonged detention where the alleged offences were bailable.
He argued that repeated arraignment and the imposition of
difficult bail conditions could create the impression that authorities were
searching for legal grounds to keep El-Rufai detained indefinitely.
“When you are holding someone in custody for bailable
offences, and you proceed to continue to arraign that person and continue to
set conditions for bail that are almost impossible for this person to meet,”
Abdullahi said.
He added that such circumstances gave the opposition reason
to believe that the continued detention was deliberate rather than simply a
consequence of normal judicial proceedings.
El-Rufai is facing alleged financial misconduct charges
before the Federal High Court in a case brought by the Independent Corrupt
Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, over his tenure as
Kaduna governor.
He is also standing trial before the Federal High Court in
Abuja in a separate case filed by the Department of State Services, DSS,
involving allegations of wiretapping.
The ADC’s criticism comes as opposition parties prepare for
a closely contested 2027 election, with the coalition that produced the party
seeking to present itself as an alternative political platform.
Abdullahi said the coalition was formed because its members
wanted to introduce a different style of politics, while accusing the APC administration
of concentrating too heavily on retaining power.
He also criticised the government’s Renewed Hope Agenda,
dismissing it as “just a slogan that does not mean anything” while arguing that
the administration had failed to adequately address pressing national problems.
The party further alleged that legal cases involving
opposition figures were politically motivated and designed to reduce the
choices available to Nigerians before the 2027 election.
The allegations have not established that the Federal
Government is deliberately keeping El-Rufai detained until after the election.
They represent the ADC’s political interpretation of his continued detention
and the ongoing court proceedings.
For the opposition, however, the issue has become larger
than El-Rufai’s individual case. Abdullahi said his continued detention could
affect the strength of the wider opposition and the choices available to voters
in 2027.
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