The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has charged Professor Bello Abubakar, personal physician to former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, with forgery and issuing false information after he acknowledged authoring a disputed medical report used to seek bail for the politician.
The four-count charge, filed before the Kaduna State High Court in case KDH/KAD/ICPC/02/2026, alleges that Professor Abubakar—an oncology consultant at the National Hospital, Abuja—issued a document titled “Medical Report and Expert Opinion for Urgent Medical Intervention” dated June 10, 2026, despite knowing its contents were false.
Core Findings & Legal Allegations
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Unauthorized Document Issue: Court filings indicate the medical report was written on official National Hospital, Abuja letterhead without the knowledge, authorization, or administrative backing of the hospital’s management.
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Lack of Supporting Clinical Records: Management of the National Hospital, led by Chief Medical Director Dr. Muhammad Mahmud, confirmed to investigators that an internal search of electronic medical records yielded no patient file, clinical history, laboratory results, or radiological tests for El-Rufai prior to July 2026.
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Bail Application Material: The ICPC alleges that the report was issued to enable El-Rufai’s legal representatives to depose affidavits seeking his urgent release on health grounds.
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MDCN Misconduct Referral: In addition to criminal charges, the ICPC has formally reported Professor Abubakar to the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) for alleged professional misconduct and breach of medical ethics.
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ICPC vs. PROF. BELLO ABUBAKAR MATRIX │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ • Defendant : Prof. Bello Abubakar (Oncology Consultant) │
│ │
│ • Prosecuting Body: Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) │
│ │
│ • Document Title : "Medical Report & Expert Opinion for Urgent │
│ Medical Intervention" (Dated June 10, 2026) │
│ │
│ • Key Counts : Giving false info (Sec 17 ICPC Act), conferring │
│ unfair advantage (Sec 19 ICPC Act), and forgery │
│ under Sections 362 & 364 of the Penal Code. │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
(Sources: ICPC Charge Sheet & National Hospital Administrative Filings)
Statements & Defense Position
While admitting he authored and signed the document based on his long-standing clinical relationship with El-Rufai, Professor Abubakar denied any fraudulent intent or conspiracy. In his extra-judicial statement, he maintained that he has treated the former governor as a patient since 2005, though acknowledging that several informal consultations were not formally uploaded into the hospital’s central electronic database.
“The document was issued without conducting the requisite clinical, laboratory, or radiological investigations at our facility, nor was it authorized by hospital leadership. It did not originate through standard institutional channels.” — Summary of Deposition by National Hospital Management
The case remains pending before the Kaduna State High Court as judicial proceedings unfold.
Ayodele Quadri
Correspondent
