Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Abuja division of the Federal High Court has granted bail to former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, in the sum of N100 million with one surety in like sum.
The former governor, is being charged by the Department of State Services (DSS) for his alleged involvement in the bugging of the telephone line of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu.
Justice Abdulmalik, while delivering ruling on a bail application, imposed a series of stringent conditions to be met by the defendant before perfecting the bail.
The court held that the proposed surety must reside in either Maitama or Asokoro districts of Abuja, and must deposit the original Certificate of Occupancy of a landed property with the court registry.
The surety is also required to be a federal civil servant not below Grade Level 17, and must provide evidence of salary payments for at least three months, authenticated by a letter from the manager of the bank within the jurisdiction of the court.
The court further ordered the surety to depose to an affidavit of means, enter into a bail bond, and submit a recent passport photograph to the court registry.
As part of the bail conditions, El-Rufai is to deposit all valid international passports with the court.
The court also directed that a verification letter from the surety’s immediate department be submitted, alongside a tax clearance certificate covering the last six months.
Justice Abdulmalik further ordered the defendant to report to the headquarters of the DSS every last Friday of the month by 10 a.m. to sign an attendance register pending the determination of the case.
The judge warned that failure to comply would lead to an automatic revocation of the bail.
The court additionally directed the defendant to submit a letter of attestation from the Chairman of the Kaduna State Traditional Council.
The court ordered an accelerated trial.
The former FCT Minister was arraigned on a five-counts charge marked: FHC/ABJ/99/2026, for allegedly accessing the telephone conversation of Nuhu Ribadu, national security adviser, NSA.
Specifically, the defendant had in February, during an interview on Arise Television’s Prime Time said “someone wiretapped” Ribadu’s phone, allowing him to listen to the NSA instructing security operatives to effect his arrest.
