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The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday dismissed a no-case submission filed by former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, in his trial over the alleged unlawful interception of telephone communications belonging to the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
In the ruling, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik held that the Department of State Services had presented sufficient evidence to require El-Rufai to enter his defence if he wished to do so.
The judge consequently directed the former governor, who is the sole defendant in the case, to open his defence.
The defendant had opted for a no-case submission after the DSS closed its case by calling two witnesses.
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El-Rufai, through his counsel, Akinyemi Aremu, had urged the court to hold that the prosecution had failed to establish a case requiring the former governor to enter a defence.
In response, the DSS lawyer, Oluwole Aladedoye, SAN, adopted their counter affidavit in opposition to the no-case submission.
Aladedoye argued that the defence failed to address Exhibit “B”, which the prosecution said contained El-Rufai’s alleged admission concerning the tapping of Ribadu’s phone.
He submitted that since the prosecution had established a prima facie case against El-Rufai, the defendant was required by law to enter his defence.
