The Federal High Court in Abuja has granted the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) permission to play selected portions of CCTV footage in the ongoing ₦10 billion fundamental rights suit filed by former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai.
Justice Chigozie Onah ruled on Thursday that both ICPC and El-Rufai would be allowed 20 minutes each to present parts of the recordings in open court, but declined El-Rufai’s request to have the entire six-hour footage played publicly.
The judge noted that the court “cannot be turned into a viewing centre” and stressed that sensitive information in the recordings could compromise security if fully aired.
El-Rufai had sued the ICPC, its chairman Musa Aliyu, and the Attorney-General of the Federation, alleging violations of his fundamental rights during detention, including denial of access to his wife and son.
He sought ₦10 billion in damages and nine reliefs, including full disclosure of CCTV recordings and visitor logs.
ICPC countered that El-Rufai was lawfully detained under a Kaduna court order and argued that unrestricted access during his custody had led to security breaches.
The commission submitted three clips, titled The Scuffle, The Son Being Taken Away, and Unauthorised Entry as evidence, insisting they were sufficient to establish the facts in dispute.
Justice Onah rejected El-Rufai’s bid to cross-examine ICPC officials who swore affidavits, ruling that fundamental rights cases are determined by affidavit evidence.
The matter was adjourned to November 3 for continuation of hearing.
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com