Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to restrain the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and other agencies from freezing his bank accounts or seizing his assets.
El-Rufai, in a fresh suit filed by his lawyer, Oluwole Iyamu (SAN), sought an order of interim injunction directing the respondents to maintain the status quo ante pending the hearing of his application and the substantive case.
The former governor said the order is necessary to prevent a fait accompli as recognised in previous cases.
Other respondents in the suit are the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Department of State Services (DSS), and the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF).
The originating process, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/368/2026 and dated February 23 but filed on February 24, seeks eight reliefs from the court.
El-Rufai is asking the court to declare that his severance pay, received after completing his tenure as Kaduna State governor between 2015 and 2023, cannot reasonably be suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity.
He also wants a declaration that the properties he bought from the severance pay were lawfully acquired and are legally owned by him.
The former governor listed several bank accounts affected by the dispute, including accounts with Zenith Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, and Access Bank, in both naira and dollar denominations.
Why we’re yet to charge El-Rufai to court ― EFCC
El-Rufai further asked the court to declare that any move by the respondents to obtain forfeiture, freezing or seizure orders against his property or bank accounts without credible evidence would breach his fundamental rights, citing Section 17(1) of the Advance Fee Fraud Act and the Supreme Court decision in Melrose General Services Ltd v. EFCC (2024).
According to him, any ex-parte application that conceals material facts would violate his right to fair hearing and the constitutional presumption of innocence under Section 36(5).
El-Rufai consequently sought a perpetual injunction restraining the agencies from freezing, attaching, seizing or interfering with his properties and bank accounts.
He also claimed N1 billion as general, exemplary, and aggravated damages for alleged threatened violations of his rights, psychological distress, and reputational harm, and an additional N100 million as costs of the action.
In his supporting grounds, El-Rufai said he had never been convicted of any criminal offence and that his severance pay was calculated at 300 per cent of his annual basic salary in line with the Kaduna State Pension and Gratuity (Governor and Deputy Governor) Law and RMAFC guidelines.
He added that the severance pay was lawfully earned, that the ICPC wrongly concluded the package was unlawful, and that the AGF was joined to ensure any order of court would bind the federal government, stressing that he is ready to cooperate with any lawful investigation conducted in line with due process.
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