The Federal Government, through the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), has filed four charges against Bello Abubakar, an oncology consultant at the National Hospital in Abuja, for allegedly forging a medical report that was used to support a bail application for former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai.
The four-count charge sheet was filed on Friday, July 17, 2026, and accuses Mr. Abubakar of knowingly authoring a false document titled "Medical Report and Expert Opinion for Urgent Medical Intervention," dated June 10, 2026. The report was subsequently filed in a case before the Kaduna State High Court, marked KDH/KAD/ICPC/02/2026.
Details of the Four Charges
The first count accuses Mr. Abubakar of giving false information with intent to mislead a public officer, an offence contrary to Section 17(1)(c) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000. The second count alleges that he exploited his position as a medical consultant to secure an unfair advantage by knowingly issuing the report, violating Section 19 of the same Act.
On the third count, the ICPC alleges that Mr. Abubakar, a professor, acted together with one Aliyu Bala to fabricate false information. Specifically, they wrote the report to allow Mr. Bala to swear a further affidavit in support of the bail application, contrary to Section 79 of the Penal Code. The fourth count accuses him of dishonestly creating a false document by presenting the report as though it had the backing of the National Hospital, when he allegedly knew the hospital had not authorised it, an offence under Sections 362 and 364 of the Penal Code.
National Hospital's Position
The National Hospital's Chief Medical Director (CMD), Raji Mahmud, is listed among the prosecution's expected witnesses. He is set to testify that Mr. Abubakar issued the report without first examining Mr. El-Rufai and handed it directly to the family for use in the bail proceedings.
In correspondence with ICPC investigators, the CMD confirmed that the hospital had no knowledge of the report until it was brought to its attention by the commission. Although the document was written on National Hospital letterhead, hospital management said it had neither authorised it nor been consulted.
Staff searched the hospital's Electronic Medical Records using different variations of Mr. El-Rufai's name and also reviewed patients who visited the oncology clinic during the first two weeks of June 2026. No matching record was found, leading the hospital to conclude that Mr. El-Rufai was not a registered patient. The CMD noted that the absence of a hospital number or personal phone number made it impossible to verify any visits, receipts, or departmental records connected to him.
The CMD also confirmed that Mr. Abubakar remains on the hospital's staff as a Chief Consultant Radiation Oncologist, serving on a contract appointment following his retirement from full-time service.
