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The Federal Government has taken Nasir El-Rufai, former Governor of Kaduna State, to court over allegations of unlawfully intercepting the phone communications of National Security Adviser (NSA) Nuhu Ribadu. The charges, filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja, include three counts: admitting to intercepting Ribadu’s phone communications, knowing individuals involved in the act but failing to report them, and using technical equipment to compromise public safety and national security ¹ ² ³.
The allegations stem from an interview El-Rufai gave on Arise TV’s Prime Time programme, where he reportedly admitted to intercepting Ribadu’s phone communications. If convicted, El-Rufai faces penalties under the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Amendment Act, 2024, and the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003.
El-Rufai has also been invited by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for questioning related to alleged corruption during his tenure as governor
Part of the counts that the Former Governor was accused of reads :
“That you, Mallam Nasir El Rufai, adult, male, on 13th February, 2026, while appearing as a guest on Arise TV Station’s Prime Time Programme in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this court, did state during the interview that you know and relate with certain individual, who unlawfully intercepted the Phone Communications of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, without reporting the said individual to relevant Security agencies and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 27 (b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Amendment, Act, 2024.
“COUNT THREE
“That you, Mallam Nasir El Rufai, adult, male, and other still at large, sometime in 2026, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this court, with others still at large did use technical equipment or systems which compromised public safety, national security and instilling reasonable apprehension of insecurity among Nigerians by unlawfully intercepting the Phone Communications of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, to which you admitted during an interview on 13th February, 2026, on Arise TV Station’s Prime Time Programme in Abuja and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 131 (2) Nigerian Communications Act 2003.”
This comes a few days after the Special Adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, called for a full investigation into claims by El-Rufai that the phone line of Ribadu was tapped.
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