Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has withdrawn his fundamental rights enforcement suit against a chief magistrate of the FCT Magistrate’s Court in the ₦1 billion case.
His lawyer, Ugochukwu Nnakwu, informed Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja shortly after the matter was called. The decision followed concerns raised by the judge, who noted that the suit failed to clearly identify the magistrate listed as the second defendant.
In response, Nnakwu requested time to properly state the magistrate’s identity but subsequently applied to withdraw the case against the unnamed official. He also asked the court to strike out an earlier motion seeking permission to serve court documents through substituted means.
Lawyers representing the police, the Attorney-General of the Federation, and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) did not oppose the application.
In a brief ruling, Justice Abdulmalik struck out the magistrate’s name from the suit and removed the pending motion. The court then granted an adjournment to allow El-Rufai’s legal team amend their filings.
However, counsel to the ICPC, Abdul Mohammed (SAN), objected to the request for amendment, arguing that since the claims in the suit were tied to actions taken by the magistrate, removing that party effectively leaves no case to pursue.
The judge, however, urged patience and allowed the plaintiff to proceed as he deemed fit, adjourning the matter to June 17 for further proceedings.
El-Rufai is seeking ₦1 billion in damages against the ICPC, the Inspector-General of Police, and the Attorney-General of the Federation over issues linked to a search warrant issued during investigations.
