El-Rufai opts for no-case submission as DSS closes case in ‘illegal phone interception’ suit
Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has indicated his intention to file a no-case submission after the Department of State Services (DSS) closed its case in the ongoing trial over allegations of illegal phone interception and breach of national security.
At the resumed hearing on Tuesday, counsel to the DSS, Oluwole Aladedoye, informed the court that the prosecution had concluded its case and would not be calling any additional witnesses.
Aladedoye said the DSS was satisfied that the evidence already presented before the court was sufficient to establish the offences against the former governor.
Following the prosecution’s announcement, El-Rufai’s counsel, Paul Erokoro (SAN), told the court that the defence would be filing a no-case submission, arguing that the prosecution had failed to establish a case requiring his client to enter a defence.
Erokoro requested two weeks to file the application, while the DSS sought the same period to respond.
The defence also applied for a review of El-Rufai’s bail conditions, describing some of the requirements as difficult to fulfil.
Specifically, Erokoro argued that the conditions requiring Level 17 civil servants with properties in Maitama or Asokoro as sureties, as well as verification and attestation letters from the Kaduna State Traditional Council, were overly stringent.
However, Aladedoye opposed the request and urged the court to retain the existing bail conditions.
In his ruling, Justice Abdulmalik declined the application, holding that qualified civil servants who meet the requirements could be found.
The judge subsequently adjourned the matter to September 22 for the filing and hearing of the no-case submission.
El-Rufai is standing trial on a five-count amended charge filed by the DSS over allegations that he unlawfully intercepted telephone conversations linked to Nuhu Ribadu, the National Security Adviser.
The allegations stem from comments made by El-Rufai during an interview on Arise Television’s Prime Time programme, where he claimed that “someone wiretapped” Ribadu’s phone, enabling him to listen to a conversation in which the NSA allegedly instructed security operatives to arrest him.
The DSS maintains that the remarks constitute offences relating to unlawful interception of communications and national security violations.