--- title: "Court orders El-Rufai to defend himself in phone-tapping trial" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/politics/court-orders-el-rufai-to-defend-himself-in-phone-tapping-trial" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/court-orders-el-rufai-to-defend-himself-in-phone-tapping-trial" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/politics/court-orders-el-rufai-to-defend-himself-in-phone-tapping-trial.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/court-orders-el-rufai-to-defend-himself-in-phone-tapping-trial" category: "Politics" area: "Africa" published: "2026-10-26T14:05:41.280Z" source_reported: "2026-10-26T13:06:52.000Z" updated: "2026-10-26T14:05:41.280Z" trust_score: 42 critic_score: 65 hype_score: 41 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-10-26T14:45:25.345615+00:00" --- # Court orders El-Rufai to defend himself in phone-tapping trial *A Federal High Court in Abuja dismissed a no-case submission by the former governor.* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 42 of 100, higher is better. Two full reports and 18 digests corroborate the court's decision, with specific details on the judge and next hearing date. - Craft 65 of 100, higher is better. Most reports are digests, lacking depth. Full reports provide necessary detail and context. - Hype 41 of 100, lower is better. Headlines use 'Breaking' and 'Urgent' frequently, but the story is a court ruling, not immediate breaking news. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - A Federal High Court in Abuja dismissed a no-case submission by former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai. - The court ordered El-Rufai to enter his defence in a trial over alleged unlawful interception of National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu's telephone communications. - Justice Joyce Abdulmalik presided over the ruling, stating the prosecution presented sufficient evidence. - The case has been adjourned until November 25, 2026, for El-Rufai to present his defence. A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a no-case submission filed by former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai. The court ordered El-Rufai to enter his defence in a trial concerning allegations of unlawfully intercepting the telephone communications of National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu. Justice Joyce Abdulmalik presided over the ruling, stating that the Department of State Services (DSS) had presented sufficient evidence to warrant calling on the former governor to defend himself. The charges against El-Rufai stem from allegations that he unlawfully intercepted telephone conversations linked to Ribadu. This controversy arose following an interview El-Rufai gave on Arise Television in February 2026, during which he claimed to have heard intercepted conversations involving the NSA. The case has been adjourned until November 25, 2026, for El-Rufai to present his defence. ## Disagreement on defence counsel The former governor's legal team was identified differently in reports. El-Rufai, through his counsel Akinyemi Aremu, urged the court to hold that the prosecution had failed to establish a case requiring him to enter a defence, according to reports from allAfrica and P.M. News Nigeria. However, Punch Newspapers stated that El-Rufai, through his counsel Paul Erokoro, urged the court to discharge and acquit him, arguing the prosecution had not established a prima facie case. ## What the coverage left out No right-rated reports covered this story. The left and centre-rated reports did not mention the specific date in February 2026 when El-Rufai gave the interview on Arise Television that led to the charges. ## Who covered it Shares of the 6 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 50% (3) - Centre: 50% (3) - Right: 0% (0) 16 of 22 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-10-26T14:45:25.345615+00:00. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 4 times; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-10-26T15:00:18.738Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left - The two left-rated reports led with the court's rejection of El-Rufai's no-case submission and the order for him to enter his defence. Vanguard News and allAfrica, which published full reports, both stated that the Federal High Court in Abuja dismissed the submission. They reported that Justice Joyce Abdulmalik held that the DSS had placed sufficient evidence before the court to require El-Rufai to enter his defence. ### Centre - The three centre-rated reports focused on the court ordering El-Rufai to enter his defence. Daily Post Nigeria's headline stated the court 'shames El-Rufai' and ordered him to defend himself. Channels Television and allAfrica reported that Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court, Abuja, ordered the former governor to enter his defence if he so desired, noting the prosecution had presented sufficient evidence. ### Right No separate framing summary. **Provisional coverage gap:** right. The watch is not closed, so this is not yet a settled blindspot finding. ## Factuality profile of the covering outlets These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true. - mixed: 2 - high: 3 - unknown: 16 - veryHigh: 1 ## Verification scope This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true. ## Original reporting this was written from - [worldstagenews.com](https://worldstagenews.com/nigeria-federal-high-court-throws-out-el-rufais-no-case-submission) — Nigeria: Federal High Court throws out El-Rufai’s no-case submission - [ThisNigeria](https://thisnigeria.com/alleged-phone-tapping-court-orders-el-rufai-to) — Alleged phone-tapping: Court orders El-Rufai to enter defence - [Dateline Nigeria](https://dateline.ng/beaking-dss-prosecuted-el-rufai-loses-bid-to-stop-alleged-wiretapping-trial) — Beaking: DSS-prosecuted El-Rufai loses bid to stop alleged wiretapping trial - [Pointblank News](https://pointblanknews.com/pbn/news/breaking-dss-prosecuted-el-rufai-loses-bid-to-stop-alleged-wiretapping-trial) — Breaking! DSS- Prosecuted El-Rufai loses bid to stop alleged wiretapping trial - [Premium Times Nigeria](https://premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/920364-court-rules-el-rufai-has-case-to-answer-in-phone-tapping-trial.html) — Court rules El-Rufai has case to answer in phone-tapping trial - [authorityngr.com](https://authorityngr.com/2026/10/26/breaking-dss-prosecuted-el-rufai-loses-bid-to-stop-alleged-wiretapping-trial) — Breaking! DSS-Prosecuted El-Rufai loses bid to stop alleged wiretapping trial - THE AUTHORITY NEWS - [Naija News - Nigeria News](https://naijanews.com/2026/10/26/phone-tapping-court-orders-el-rufai) — Alleged Phone Tapping: Court Orders El-Rufai To Open Defence - [The Podium Media](https://thepodiummedia.com/court-dismisses-el-rufais-no-case-submission-in-illegal-phone-interception-case) — Court Dismisses El-Rufai’s No-case Submission in ‘Illegal Phone Interception’ Case - [NewsTimes.com.ng](https://newstimes.com.ng/2026/10/phone-tapping-charge-court-rejects-el-rufais-no-case-submission) — Phone-tapping charge: Court rejects El-Rufai’s no-case submission - NewsTmes.com.ng - [Punch Newspapers](https://punchng.com/just-in-court-orders-el-rufai-to-enter-defence-in-wiretapping-trial) — JUST IN: Court orders El-Rufai to enter defence in wiretapping trial - [Idoma Voice Newspaper](https://idomavoice.com/el-rufai-phone-tapping-court-orders-defence) — BREAKING: Court orders El-Rufai to defend Himself in phone-tapping trial - [Legit.ng - Nigeria news.](https://legit.ng/nigeria/1737936-breaking-court-issues-order-el-rufai-case-dss) — Breaking: Court issues order to El-Rufai in case against DSS - [The Whistler Nigeria](https://thewhistler.ng/court-rejects-el-rufais-no-case-submission-in-ribadu-phone-tapping-trial) — Court Rejects El-Rufai’s No-Case Submission In Ribadu Phone Tapping Trial - [tv360nigeria.com](https://tv360nigeria.com/wiretapping-trial-el-rufai-faces-fresh-legal-hurdle-as-court-rejects-no-case-submission) — Alleged Wiretapping Trial: El-Rufai Faces Fresh Legal Hurdle as Court Rejects No-Case Submission - TV360 Nigeria - [TheNigerialawyer](https://thenigerialawyer.com/prosecution-has-furnished-sufficient-evidence-court-dismisses-el-rufais-no-case-submission-orders-him-to-enter-defence) — “Prosecution Has Furnished Sufficient Evidence” — Court Dismisses El-Rufai’s No-Case Submission, Orders Him To Enter Defence - [allAfrica](https://allafrica.com/stories/202610260290.html) — Nigeria: Alleged Phone-Tapping - Court Rejects El-Rufai's No-Case Submission - [Daily Post Nigeria](https://dailypost.ng/2026/10/26/breaking-phone-tapping-court-shames-el-rufai-orders-him-to-defend-himself-over-ribadu-wiretap) — BREAKING: Phone-tapping: Court orders El-Rufai to defend himself - [QUICK NEWS AFRICA](https://quicknews-africa.net/alleged-phone-tapping-court-rejects-el-rufais-no-case-submission) — Alleged phone-tapping: Court rejects El-Rufai’s no-case submission - [P.M. News Nigeria](https://pmnewsnigeria.com/2026/10/26/court-orders-el-rufai-to-enter-defence-in-%e2%81%a0%e2%81%a0%e2%81%a0%e2%81%a0) — Court orders El-Rufai to enter defence in ​⁠​​‌‌​phone-tapping trial - [Vanguard News](https://vanguardngr.com/2026/10/alleged-phone-tapping-court-rejects-el-rufais-no-case-submission) — Alleged phone-tapping: Court rejects El-Rufai’s no-case submission - [tvcnews.tv](https://tvcnews.tv/court-orders-el-rufai-to-enter-defence-in-alleged-wiretapping-trial) — Court Orders El-Rufai To Enter Defence In Alleged Wiretapping Trial - [Channels Television](https://channelstv.com/2026/10/26/alleged-wire-tapping-court-orders-el-rufai-to-enter-defense) — Alleged Wire Tapping: Court Orders El-Rufai To Enter Defense ## Questions **What was the court ruling regarding Nasir El-Rufai's no-case submission?** A Federal High Court in Abuja dismissed the no-case submission filed by former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai. The court found that the prosecution had presented sufficient evidence to require him to enter his defence in the ongoing trial. **What are the charges against Nasir El-Rufai?** The charges allege that Nasir El-Rufai unlawfully intercepted telephone conversations linked to the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu. This stems from an interview El-Rufai gave in February 2026, where he claimed to have heard intercepted communications involving Ribadu. **When will Nasir El-Rufai present his defence?** The case has been adjourned until November 25, 2026, for Nasir El-Rufai to present his defence. This follows the court's decision to dismiss his no-case submission and order him to proceed with presenting his side of the case. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/politics/court-orders-el-rufai-to-defend-himself-in-phone-tapping-trial. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "Court orders El-Rufai to defend himself in phone-tapping trial", https://mediabias.news/politics/court-orders-el-rufai-to-defend-himself-in-phone-tapping-trial