A Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday adjourned proceedings in a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, after procedural issues were raised during the hearing.
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The trial judge, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, declined a request to stand the matter down, explaining that she had another official engagement to attend.
During the session, the court sought clarification on the status of the 2nd respondent in the case, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.Breaking news alerts
Counsel for the applicant, Mr Ugochukwu Nnakwu, told the court that “the 2nd respondent had not yet been served” and added that he had filed an application for substituted service.
As he moved to argue the application, the judge interrupted and asked him to identify the specific chief magistrate mentioned in the suit.
“You are supposed to include his name in your application,” the judge corrected.
Mr Nnakwu accepted the observation and applied for an adjournment to enable him regularise the process.
Counsel representing other respondents, including R.N. Maiguru for the Inspector-General of Police and Chima Augustine for the Attorney-General of the Federation, did not oppose the request.
Justice Abdulmalik subsequently adjourned the case until March 31 for the hearing of pending motions and ordered that a hearing notice be issued and served on the 2nd respondent.
In the substantive suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/345/2026, filed on February 20 by Oluwole Iyamu, SAN, Mr El-Rufai is seeking N1 billion in damages against the ICPC, the Chief Magistrate of the FCT, the Inspector-General of Police and the Attorney-General of the Federation.
The former governor is asking the court to declare that the search of his residence in Abuja violated his rights, stating that it amounted to a breach of “the applicant’s fundamental rights” and constituted a violation of “dignity of the human person, personal liberty, fair hearing, and privacy under Sections 34, 35, 36, and 37 of the Constitution.”
He also urged the court to declare that “any evidence obtained pursuant to the aforesaid invalid warrant and unlawful search is inadmissible in any proceedings against the applicant, as it was procured in breach of constitutional safeguards.”
Among other reliefs, he is seeking an order restraining the respondents from using any items recovered during the search and directing that all seized materials be returned with a detailed inventory.
In response, the ICPC, in a counter-affidavit, stated that it acted on a petition and conducted the search based on a valid warrant issued on February 18 and executed on February 19.
The commission said its operatives carried out the exercise alongside police officers and that the search was witnessed by Mr El-Rufai’s wife and son.
The Nigeria Police Force also maintained that the search was lawful, arguing that it was carried out pursuant to a warrant issued by a competent court.Nigerian news analysis
The police rejected claims that the warrant was invalid, insisting that due process was followed and urging the court to dismiss the suit in its entirety.
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