Fresh Twist As El-Rufai Pulls Three Court Applications In Corruption Trial

Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai has withdrawn three applications previously filed in his ongoing corruption case before the Kaduna State High Court.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

During proceedings on Wednesday, El-Rufai’s new lead counsel, Paul Erokoro (SAN), sought the court’s permission to withdraw the applications, apologising for the tone and language used in the earlier filings, which he described as unnecessarily confrontational.

Appearing before Justice Darius Khobo, Erokoro explained that after taking over the defence, he reviewed the pending applications and concluded that some of the language employed was inappropriate.

He characterised the motions as “combative in nature,” saying he could not adopt certain expressions used by the previous legal team.

The senior advocate told the court that a fresh application had already been filed to replace the withdrawn motions and requested additional time to complete the process and prepare for its hearing.

Justice Khobo granted the request and adjourned the matter until July 22, 2026, for hearing on the new application.

Prosecution Alleges Delay Tactics

Speaking to journalists after the proceedings, prosecution counsel Ibrahim Muktar accused the defence of delaying the commencement of the substantive trial through the repeated filing of applications.

According to Muktar, two additional applications seeking the judge’s recusal were filed after the last adjournment, adding to the number of pending motions before the court.

He argued that the defence’s approach had slowed the progress of the case despite the prosecution’s readiness to proceed.

“Charge has been filed, prosecution is ready, defence is bringing multiple applications, and that is what is destroying the time, frustrating the prosecution from commencing the trial,” Muktar said.

“We would have gone far if not because of these applications.”