The ongoing detention of former Kaduna State governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, has drawn criticism from politicians and socio-political activists.
Reports indicate El-Rufai remains in the custody of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, amid an investigation into alleged financial misconduct during his tenure as governor.
He had previously spent two nights with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, before being taken by the Department of State Services and later handed over to ICPC.
The prolonged detention has sparked public outrage, with calls for the former governor to be charged in court without further delay.
Socio-political activist Aisha Yesufu stated on X on Wednesday, the 18th of March, 2026,: “holding a citizen indefinitely without trial” is impossible.
She added, “that is not justice. That is not accountability. That begins to look like persecution.
“Every Nigerian, no matter how powerful or unpopular, has the right to a fair hearing. That right is not a favour from the government. It is a constitutional guarantee. If El-Rufai committed crimes, then prosecute him. Nigerians will support that. But what we must never support is a system where the government can detain anyone endlessly, simply because it can.
“Today, it may be El-Rufai. Tomorrow, it could be anyone else who speaks or acts in a way that those in power do not like. A democracy must be better than that.
“So the message is simple: charge him in court or release him. Let justice be done openly, lawfully, and transparently. That is the only way a nation that claims to respect the rule of law should act.”
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Activist lawyer Deji Adeyanju also weighed in on X, urging that El-Rufai be charged immediately.
“No matter the allegations, I think he should be charged in a court of competent jurisdiction so that he can face the music.
“All these things currently going on don’t look tidy to me,” he said.
Paul Ibe, media aide to former vice president Atiku Abubakar, accused the ICPC of partisanship in a statement on X.
He wrote, “The matter of the former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai @elrufai has proven beyond measure that the ‘I’ in ICPC (Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission) @icpcnigeria represents Illegal or Irresponsible.
“There’s nothing Independent about the Commission. They’re no different from all the other institutions of state that are standing on Tinubu’s mandate. The ICPC is nauseatingly pliable and has disgracefully made itself available in coercing members of the opposition into the ruling party”!