Former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has warned that Nigeria must stop what he described as a deliberate disregard for the rule of law.
The warning comes after security operatives reportedly attempted to arrest him on Thursday upon his arrival at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, from Cairo, Egypt.
According to reports, officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) seized the former governor’s international passport during the incident.
Reacting to the development, El-Rufai’s counsel, Ubong Esop Akpan, demanded the immediate return of his client’s passport and threatened legal action against those involved.
The lawyer called for the “immediate and unconditional cessation of all unlawful efforts to detain El-Rufai, the immediate return of his stolen passport, and a formal apology for this egregious infringement on his dignity and rights.”
El-Rufai also addressed the matter in a post on his X handle, describing the attempted arrest as illegal.
“My lawyers have issued a statement that condemns the illegal attempt to arrest me today at the Abuja airport upon my arrival from Cairo,” he wrote.
“Our country must outgrow executive overreach and deliberate disregard for the rule of law.”
There has been no official statement from the EFCC regarding the incident at the time of filing this report.
