The Federal Government has filed a three-count charge against former governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai over the alleged interception of communications belonging to Nigeria’s National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu.
TopSociety reports that El-Rufai claimed in a live interview on national television that he and other unnamed individuals listened to conversations from Ribadu’s phone after it was tapped by a third party.
While acknowledging that such interception is technically unlawful, he argued that the Federal Government also illegally wiretaps the conversations of Nigerians.
The government, through the Department of State Services (DSS), has now dragged El-Rufai before the Federal High Court in Abuja. The charges were contained in a document marked FHC/ABJ/CR/99/2026, obtained by various news outlets.
The prosecution claimed that on February 13, 2026, while appearing as a guest on Arise TV’s Prime Time programme in Abuja, El-Rufai admitted that he and others unlawfully intercepted the phone communications of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
The charges are as below:
CHARGE
COUNT ONE
That you, Mallam Nasir El Rufai, adult, male, on 13th February, 2026, while appearing as a guest on Arise TV Station’s Prime Time Programme in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this court, did admit during the interview that you and your cohorts unlawfully intercepted the Phone Communications of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 12 (1) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Amendment Act, 2024.
COUNT TWO
That you, Mallam Nasir El Rufai, adult, male, on 13th February, 2026, while appearing as a guest on Arise TV Station’s Prime Time Programme in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this court, did state during the interview that you know and relate with certain individual, who unlawfully intercepted the Phone Communications of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, without reporting the said individual to relevant Security agencies and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 27 (b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Amendment Act, 2024.
COUNT THREE
That you, Mallam Nasir El Rufai, adult, male, and other still at large, sometime in 2026, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this court, with others still at large did use technical equipment or systems which compromised public safety, national security and instilling reasonable apprehension of insecurity among Nigerians by unlawfully intercepting the Phone Communications of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, to which you admitted during an interview on 13th February, 2026, on Arise TV Station’s Prime Time Programme in Abuja and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 131 (2) Nigerian Communications Act 2003.
