Nasir El-Rufai, the former governor of Kaduna State, has officially asked the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, to immediately move Justice R.M. Aikawa of the Federal High Court, Kaduna, away from overseeing his ongoing criminal trial.
El-Rufai asked the CJN in a petition dated April 9, 2026, to move the case to another judge in the Kaduna division or take other administrative steps to protect the integrity of the proceedings and keep the public’s trust in the judiciary.
He said that Justice Aikawa’s continued handling of the case was “untenable in law, prudence, common sense, and judicial ethics,” citing alleged bias, pending disciplinary complaints against the judge, and the judge’s refusal to recuse himself.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has filed a 10-count charge against El-Rufai and his co-defendant, and Justice Aikawa is currently in charge of the case.
The charges are for abusing power, laundering money, and committing fraud with ₦579.6 million and $1.1 million.
The bail hearing for this case is set for April 14.
El-Rufai’s most recent petition, which comes after one he filed in February 2025, lists a number of reasons why he wants the judge to be removed from the case.
There are a number of complaints that haven’t been resolved yet and are currently with the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court and the National Judicial Council (NJC).
He also said that the current criminal charge and the previous case involve the same person, the same court, and the same facts and political situations, which he called a “objective appearance of bias.”
The petition said, “Even if actual bias is denied, the appearance of bias is unavoidable, which the law treats as equally fatal.”
“Letting Justice Aikawa keep going with this criminal trial could hurt people’s trust in the courts, damage the integrity of the proceedings, and make it almost certain that the whole thing will be overturned on appeal.”
El-Rufai said that Justice Aikawa should have turned down the case from the start or sent it to the Chief Judge to be assigned to another judge in the Kaduna division or somewhere else in the Federal High Court.
He said that the CJN needed to step in again because the judge didn’t do either of those things.
El-Rufai’s petition asked the CJN to tell the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court to quickly give the case to another judge, either in or out of the Kaduna division. He also asked that the Preliminary Assessment Committee of the NJC look over the details of Justice Aikawa’s behavior and that any other steps needed to keep the proceedings fair and the public’s trust in the judiciary be taken.
