ADC criticizes ICPC over arrest of El-Rufai's doctor, claims wife was attacked

The African Democratic Congress has slammed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission. They criticized the arrest of Nasir El-Rufai’s personal doctor and said the agency also assaulted the former governor’s wife during a visit to the hospital.

The party made their feelings known in a statement on Tuesday from their National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi. They accused the ICPC of blocking El-Rufai from getting proper medical care and violating his rights.

The ADC said El-Rufai was taken to the National Hospital in Abuja for treatment. Doctors there allegedly suggested that he should be admitted due to his health issues.

The party claimed that ICPC officials insisted on taking him back into custody, ignoring the doctors' advice. They said that protests from his wife and personal doctor led to a confrontation.

“Information reaching us is that El-Rufai was billed for treatment at the National Hospital in Abuja today. But against the hospital’s advice that he would require hospitalisation in view of his failing health, officials of the ICPC insisted on returning him into custody. Protests by his personal physician and his wife led to scuffles during which his wife was assaulted and the doctor subsequently arrested,” the statement said.

The ADC alleged that what the ICPC did went beyond law enforcement and was actually political persecution.

“The world should know today that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is holding a political prisoner in Nigeria by the name of Mallam Nasiru El-Rufai.

“No democratic government that claims to respect the rule of law should deny a detainee access to medical care or prevent close family members from seeing him in flagrant disobedience of the courts, which granted him unfettered access to his lawyers, physician and family members.

“Such conduct belongs to authoritarian regimes that use state institutions to break political opponents rather than to uphold justice,” the party stated.

The opposition party emphasized that this issue is not just about El-Rufai. It is also about protecting democracy and the rule of law.

The ADC urged the ICPC to explain why El-Rufai was denied access to his family and physician.

“The ICPC owes Nigerians immediate explanations. On whose authority was access to his family denied? Why has access to his doctor been refused despite concerns about his health? What legal basis exists for these actions? Why were El-Rufai’s wife and doctor assaulted by the ICPC operatives?” it asked.

The party also accused President Tinubu of allowing anti-corruption agencies to intimidate people for political reasons, saying that the President is ultimately responsible.

They demanded that El-Rufai should have unrestricted access to his family, lawyers, and personal doctors. They want a review of his bail conditions, an end to what they called degrading detention conditions, and more transparency from the ICPC.

The statement came shortly after the ICPC said they arrested El-Rufai’s personal physician, Prof. Bello Abubakar. They accused him of making false statements and claimed that the former governor abused a court-approved medical visit by meeting with political associates instead of getting medical care.

The commission also said they would inform the court about the alleged violation of the court order.