Human rights lawyer and activist Deji Adeyanju on Monday testified before the Federal High Court in Abuja in the ongoing trial of former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, who is facing charges related to an alleged breach of national security.
Adeyanju appeared before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik as the second prosecution witness after being summoned by the court.
The Department of State Services (DSS) had instituted the case against El-Rufai over comments he made during a television interview in which he claimed to have intercepted a telephone conversation involving the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
According to El-Rufai, the alleged conversation contained instructions to security operatives to arrest him upon his return from Cairo, Egypt, on February 12.
During Monday’s proceedings, prosecution counsel, Oluwole Aladedoye, SAN, tendered the subpoena issued to Adeyanju, which the court admitted as Exhibit G without any objection from the defence.
While testifying, Adeyanju told the court that reports had emerged on February 12 suggesting El-Rufai could either be arrested or invited for questioning by security agencies.
He recalled appearing on an Arise Television programme on February 13, shortly after El-Rufai had been interviewed on the same station.
“I went to Arise, and El-Rufai was also on the show. My segment came after his. During his interview, I listened to him speak on many issues, and I countered many of the things he said because they were not true or were half-truths,” Adeyanju told the court.
