Kaduna Elders Sue El-Rufai for ₦2.3 Billion Over Human Rights Violations

A group of Southern Kaduna Elders, under the Adara Development Association (ADA), has taken former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, to court over alleged human rights violations, demanding ₦2.3 billion in compensation.

The elders, led by ADA’s former chairman, Aweni Dio Maisamari, filed the suit at the Federal High Court in Kaduna, claiming they were unjustly arrested, imprisoned, and later released during El-Rufai’s administration in 2019.

The claimants are seeking damages for arbitrary detention, exemplary damages, and other violations of their fundamental rights.

Justice Hauwa’u Buhari, presiding over the case, adjourned the hearing to allow for proper service of court papers to the respondents, in accordance with order 5 rule 7 of the Fundamental Human Rights Acts.

Gloria Ballason, counsel to the plaintiffs, explained that her clients were imprisoned for over three months without any charges, and were eventually released after the court found no evidence against them.

“We are here to enforce the fundamental rights of the Adara Elders, who were unjustly detained in 2019. They were imprisoned for over three months, and after being released, no charges were ever brought against them,” Ballason stated.

She also linked the arrest to the killing of their chief, Rafael Maiwada Galadima, which occurred under suspicious circumstances during the same period.

Ballason further accused the former governor’s administration of multiple rights violations, including wrongful imprisonments, attacks, and killings.