Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai will have to defend himself against allegations of unlawfully intercepting telephone conversations involving the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, after a Federal High Court in Abuja rejected his no-case submission.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik dismissed the application on Monday, ruling that the evidence presented by the prosecution was sufficient to require the former governor to respond to the allegations contained in the five-count amended charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS).
The judge subsequently directed El-Rufai to open his defence and adjourned the case until November 25, 2026, for the continuation of proceedings.
El-Rufai filed the no-case submission after the prosecution closed its case, having called two witnesses to give evidence in support of the charges.
Through his counsel, Paul Erokoro, the former governor had asked the court to discharge and acquit him, arguing that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case requiring him to enter a defence.
Erokoro maintained that the evidence presented by the prosecution was insufficient to justify asking his client to respond to the allegations.
However, prosecution counsel, Oluwole Aladedoye, urged the court to reject the application, arguing that the oral and documentary evidence presented during the trial established a case that required the defendant to answer.
In her ruling, Justice Abdulmalik agreed with the prosecution that the matter should proceed to the defence stage. The decision means the trial will continue, rather than end at the stage of the no-case submission.
The charges against El-Rufai arose from allegations that he unlawfully intercepted telephone conversations linked to Ribadu.
The case followed an interview the former governor granted on Arise Television’s Prime Time programme in February 2026, during which he claimed that the National Security Adviser’s telephone conversation had been intercepted.
During the interview, El-Rufai said “someone wiretapped” Ribadu’s phone, allowing him to listen to a conversation in which the NSA allegedly instructed security operatives to arrest him.
The allegation subsequently became the basis of the DSS prosecution against the former governor.
A no-case submission is an application by a defendant asking a court to terminate a case at the close of the prosecution’s evidence on the grounds that the evidence presented does not establish a case requiring a defence. When such an application is dismissed, the defendant is generally required to present a defence, although the ruling does not amount to a finding of guilt.
With the application dismissed, El-Rufai is expected to respond to the allegations when the case resumes on November 25, 2026. The prosecution will still be required to prove its case in accordance with the law, and the former governor remains entitled to defend himself against the charges.
