- Ex-governor’s passport seized
There was a mild drama at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on Thursday, as a former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, allegedly resisted an attempt by security operatives to arrest him upon return from Cairo, Egypt.
His Media Adviser, Muyiwa Adekeye, who disclosed the incident in a post on his verified X handle shortly after it occurred, said security agents approached the former governor as he disembarked from his flight and sought to take him into custody.
He said El-Rufai declined to comply, insisting that he would not honor the request without a formal invitation.
“Security agents today attempted to arrest Mallam Nasir El-Rufai as he arrived on a flight from Cairo. Mallam El-Rufai declined to follow them without a formal invitation,” Adekeye stated.
He further alleged that the operatives seized El-Rufai’s passport during the encounter, claiming that it was taken from one of his aides.
A video of the incident, which circulated widely online, showed El-Rufai confronting one of the operatives.
In the footage, he is heard insisting that even the President could not compel him to appear without due process, stressing that Nigeria remains a free country.
The former governor had, just a day earlier, warned of his possible arrest amid what he described as an alleged clampdown on opposition figures.
Speaking during an interview with the BBC Hausa Service on Wednesday, El-Rufai had lamented that, although he had not been apprehended at that time, several individuals who worked with him during his tenure as Kaduna State governor had already been arrested.
“About four people we worked with in Kaduna have been arrested. So, it may only be a matter of time before they come for me as well,” he said.
This incident follows a series of high-profile legal moves against opposition figures, including the recent arraignment of former Attorney-General Abubakar Malami on terrorism-related charges.
Both Malami and El-Rufai recently joined the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and have been critical of the current administration’s policies.
As of the time of filing this report, security agencies had yet to issue an official response to the allegations of the attempted arrest or the seizure of the former governor’s passport.