Court Document Shows “Strange Reason” Kaduna State High Court Gave For Denying El-rufai Bail
Court Document Shows “Strange Reason” Kaduna State High Court Gave For Denying El-rufai Bail
The Cerified True Copy (CTC) of Kaduna State High Court ruling on Nasir El-rufai’s bail application has generated some concerns.
Nasir El-rufai was arraigned by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) before justice Darius Khobo of Kaduna State High Court who in his ruling, held that Nasir El-rufai remains in custody of the ICPC for him to be available for his court his trial.
Nasir El-rufai is facing trial over alleged conferment of false benefits and dishonest disbursement of loan funds.
Justice Darius Khobo stated that Nasir El-rufai argued that the offences he is facing trial are non-capital and that he be giving bail on self recognition as a former governor of Kaduna State as well as his community ties.
The judge also noted that the fear of the ICPC is that Nasir El-rufai has strong link and wherewithal to jump bail, citing the event that played out at the airport when he arrived from Cairo and resisted arrest.
The law is trite: if in an application for bail pending trial there is good reason to believe or strongly suspect that the accused will jump bail, thereby making himself unavailable to stand his trial, and/or will interfere with the witnesses, thereby constituting an obstacle in the way of justice, the Court will be acting within its undoubted discretion to refuse bail”, the judge held.
The judge also noted that while Nasir El-rufai sought bail on health ground, he failed to provide any medical proof to his claim of deserving specialist medical care.
In the instant application, the applicant alluded to facts that he has health conditions requiring specialist monitoring, but the applicant did not attach any medical evidence to substantiate his claim of ill-health.
The law is settled that where an application for bail seeks to lay claim to ill-health, credible evidence in that branch of medicine ought to be made available before the court by the Applicant.
Accordingly, the Defendant/Applicant’s application for bail pending trial fails and is hereby REFUSED.
The Defendant/Applicant shall remain in the custody of the Respondent (ICPC) pending the commencement of the trial”.
