El-Rufai asks court to quash DSS suit, award N2bn compensation

By Ayorinde Oluokun/Abuja

Former Kaduna governor, Nasir El-Rufai has asked a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja to quash the charges filed against him by the Department of State Services, DSS for allegedly tapping the telephone lines of National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
 
He also asked the court to order payment of N2 billion as costs against the DSS (acting through its prosecuting counsel) for alleged abuse and misuse of the court process, and the egregious, reckless, and unconstitutional misuse of the criminal justice system to harass, embarrass, and publicly victimize him.
 
Recall that DSS had last week filed a three-count criminal charge bordering on unlawful interception of the phone communications of Ribadu against El-Rufai.

This was after the former governor who is also a chieftain of opposition African Democratic Congress (ADC) disclosed during a live interview on February 13, 2026, in Abuja admitted that he and some associates intercepted the private phone communications of the NSA.

In the charges, the Federal Government claimed that the alleged act of El-Rufai amounted to a serious breach of Nigeria’s cybercrime and communications laws and posed a threat to public safety and national security.

Also, The DSS said the action of the former governor is in contravention of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) (Amendment) Act, 2024, as well as the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003.

The secret police also said the unlawful use of technical equipment to intercept the NSA’s communications compromised national security and created reasonable apprehension of insecurity among Nigerians.

Now, ahead of the hearing of the suit scheduled for tomorrow, Wednesday, 25th February, El-Rufai had filed as application seeking the quashing of the charges for being incompetent, not disclosing no offence known to law, and for constituting a gross abuse of court process.

El-Rufai, in the motion, cited 17 grounds for seeking the dismissal of the charges in the application which was filed on 17 February 2023.

El-Rufai’s motion is praying the court for the following reliefs:

An Order quashing and/or striking out Charge No. FHC/ABJ/CR/99/2026 (as contained in the charge dated 16th February 2026)  for  being incompetent, for disclosing no offence known to law, and for constituting a gross abuse of court process.
 
An Order discharging the Defendant/Applicant on the ground that the charge discloses no prima facie case against him.
 
An Order awarding the sum of N2,000,000,000.00 (Two Billion Naira) only as costs against the Department of State Services (acting through its prosecuting counsel) for the abuse and misuse of the court process, and the egregious, reckless, and unconstitutional misuse of the criminal justice system to harass, embarrass, and publicly victimize the Defendant/Applicant.
 
The grounds cited in the motion seeking the dismissal of the charges include: their constitutional invalidity, lack of disclosure of a prima facie case, citing offences not known to law and failure to meet statutory conditions. Other grounds cited include fatal duplicity and absence of evidence, lack of prosecutorial competence, the impermeable nature of the constitutional right against self-incrimination, bad faith and political persecution and abuse of court process.
 
The former governor also that the prosecution has engaged in constitutional violations, breaching El-Rufai’s fundamental rights, including: (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) Section 36(5): Presumption of innocence, Section 36(1 1): Right against self-incrimination, Section 36(12): Requirement that offences be defined in written law, Section 39: Freedom of expression and Section 40: Freedom of association.