Court Rejects Former Ministers Bid to Void Arrest Warrant

A Federal Capital Territory High Court in Apo, Abuja, has refused to cancel an arrest warrant issued for former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar-Farouq. In a ruling delivered on Monday, June 15, 2026, Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie dismissed the application filed by the former minister to set aside the bench warrant, stating she had failed to provide a convincing reason for her absence.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is prosecuting Umar-Farouq alongside two others, Bashir Nura Alkali and Sani Nafiu Mohammed, on charges of criminal conspiracy, abuse of office, and the diversion of public funds amounting to $1.3 million and N746.7 million. The case arises from the ministry's activities between May 2021 and September 2022.

Justice Onwuegbuzie ruled that Umar-Farouq, who was fully aware of the criminal proceedings, had willfully failed to appear in court without a valid excuse. He specifically rejected medical reasons cited for her absence, questioning why conditions described as "mere arthritis and heart disease" would prevent her attendance given available medical facilities in Nigeria. "I am convinced that...