A Federal High Court sitting in Kaduna has ordered former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, and five others to pay ₦900 million in damages for the unlawful detention of nine Adara elders in 2019.
Justice Hauwa’u Buhari, who presided over the case on Tuesday, May 27, ruled in favour of Awemi Dio Maisamari and eight other elders arrested in connection with the killing of their traditional ruler, Raphael Maiwada Galadima.
El-Rufai, sued in his personal capacity, was found liable for ordering their arrest and prolonged detention in 2019, after a town hall meeting in Kajuru Local Government Area, following the monarch’s abduction and murder.
The court also dismissed objections raised by the defendants, who claimed the case was a tort matter and beyond the court’s jurisdiction. Justice Buhari held that the plaintiffs’ fundamental human rights had been violated.
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Reacting to the ruling, plaintiffs’ lead counsel, Gloria Ballason, hailed the judgement as a critical check on executive excesses.
She said, “This judgment is a watershed moment in the fight against executive lawlessness and human rights violations. It reaffirms that public office holders can be held accountable even after leaving office.”
The detained elders, which included a former commissioner and a retired police officer, were held for several months before being released on the recommendation of the state’s attorney general, who found no legal basis for their continued detention.