The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has arrested Professor Bello Abubakar, the personal physician to former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, over allegations of making false statements in connection with a hospital visit granted to the former governor.

The Commission said the arrest followed an investigation into what it described as an abuse of the medical consultation approved by the court while El-Rufai remains in its custody.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, ICPC spokesperson, Okor Odey, said the Commission had facilitated El-Rufai's request for medical attention under appropriate security arrangements and in compliance with a court order.

According to the statement, officers of the Commission's medical and security team conducted themselves professionally during the visit to the private wing of the National Hospital, Abuja, on Tuesday, July 7, 2026, and respected the former governor's privacy by remaining outside the consultation room at the request of his family while he was being attended to by his oncologist.

However, the Commission alleged that the medical visit was used for activities beyond the purpose for which it was approved.

The ICPC said that at about 2:00 p.m., Isa Ashiru Kudan, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) governorship candidate in Kaduna State, shared photographs on Facebook claiming he had concluded a meeting with El-Rufai. The photographs reportedly showed El-Rufai alongside Professor Bello Abubakar, Isa Kudan and three other individuals during the period he was expected to be undergoing medical consultation.

According to the Commission, the social media post suggested that the hospital visit was used to hold a political meeting, an action it described as a violation of the court order and the conditions under which the medical consultation was granted.

"The images and post by Isa Kudan indicated that the arranged medical visit was utilised for activities outside the scope contemplated by the court and the ICPC. This is a clear violation of the court order," the statement read.

The Commission further alleged that the professional courtesies extended to the former governor had been repeatedly abused, adding that Professor Bello Abubakar was taken into custody for allegedly making false statements regarding the circumstances of the visit.

The development comes days after the Kaduna State High Court dismissed El-Rufai's third application for bail in the ongoing trial over a nine-count charge filed against him by the ICPC.

Justice Darius Khobo, who presided over the matter, ruled that the medical report presented by the former governor could not support his application because it had allegedly been disowned by the National Hospital, Abuja.

Despite refusing the bail request, the court directed the ICPC to grant El-Rufai unrestricted access to his personal physicians and allow them to take him to any specialised diagnostic or clinical facility of his choice within Nigeria whenever necessary during the trial.