Court orders FG to pay El Rufai N1 million as damages

Mallam Nasir el-Rufai

 An Abuja Federal High Court on Tuesday ordered the Federal Government to pay the sum of N1m as general damages to a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, for refusing to renew his international passport in 2009.

The court also ordered the government to renew the former minister’s international passport.

While ruling on an ex-parte motion brought by El-Rufai against the Federal Government, through which he sought to enforce his fundamental rights, the presiding judge, Justice Abdul Kafarati, held that the Federal Government was unable to show any reason why it declined the former minister’s request for the renewal of his international passport.

Consequently, Kafarati ordered the Federal Government to renew El-Rufai’s passport and ordered it to pay the sum of N1m as general damages to the former Federal Capital Territory minister.