Share!
El-Rufai Alleges NSA Ordered Plot to Arrest Him, Claims Phone Was Tapped to Expose Plan
Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has alleged that the National SecurybArresteity Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, personally ordered security operatives to arrest him upon arrival at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, claiming that a tapped phone conversation exposed the directive.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE TV News on Friday, El-Rufai said he was informed that Ribadu gave instructions for him to be taken into custody “by all means necessary” when he landed in Abuja from Cairo.
According to the former governor, about 50 operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) were deployed to the airport on the request of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to effect his arrest.
“We tapped Nuhu Ribadu’s phone and confirmed he gave the order for 50 DSS to abduct me at the airport by all means. It wasn’t the EFCC. It was the ICPC,” El-Rufai alleged during the interview.
He further claimed that the security operatives who accosted him at the airport failed to present any formal letter of invitation or arrest warrant.
“I asked for a letter of invitation, and none of them had one. I refused to follow them without it. They tried to force me to go with them. One of my aides was beaten, and my passport was seized,” he said.
The attempted arrest reportedly occurred on Thursday shortly after El-Rufai arrived at the Abuja airport from Cairo. Sources had earlier indicated that operatives linked to the ICPC were at the airport in what was described as a move to detain the former governor.
El-Rufai insisted that the operation was politically motivated, alleging that the current administration is targeting him and his associates.
“This administration is desperate and determined to bring down everyone. They think we were thieves like them when we were in government,” he said.
He disclosed that since leaving office in May 2023, he has been under investigation, with several of his former aides, including his ex-Chief of Staff and Commissioner of Finance, allegedly arrested and charged to court.
“They have investigated me since June 2023 and found nothing. Virtually all my senior officials have been interrogated and charged with frivolous allegations, and nothing has been established,” he stated.
No related posts.
