A former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has condemned what he described as an illegal attempt by security operatives to arrest him at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, following his arrival from Cairo, Egypt.

El-Rufai made this known in a post on his verified X (formerly Twitter) handle on Thursday, where he accused authorities of executive overreach and disregard for the rule of law.

“My lawyers have issued a statement that condemns the illegal attempt to arrest me today at the Abuja airport upon my arrival from Cairo,” El-Rufai wrote.

“Our country must outgrow executive overreach and deliberate disregard for the rule of law,” he added.

PUNCH Online had earlier reported that security agents had moved to detain the former governor shortly after he landed in Abuja.

According to a post by his media aide, Muyiwa Adekeye, the operatives approached El-Rufai at the airport and attempted to take him into custody without presenting a formal invitation or warrant.

The aide alleged that El-Rufai declined to follow the agents without due process, insisting on a lawful invitation, after which the operatives allegedly seized his international passport from one of his aides before withdrawing.

The statement read, “Security agents today attempted to arrest Malam Nasir El-Rufai as he arrived on a flight from Cairo. Malam El-Rufai declined to follow them without a formal invitation.”

Adekeye further alleged that the security personnel seized the former governor’s passport during the encounter.

“They, however, snatched his passport from an aide,” he added.

As of the time of filing this report, no official statement has been issued by security agencies to clarify the circumstances surrounding the incident or to confirm whether El-Rufai is under investigation.

The development has sparked renewed debate over the conduct of security agencies and concerns about alleged executive overreach, particularly involving opposition figures and former public office holders.