A Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Apo, Abuja, has retained the arrest warrant issued against former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq, after her lawyer informed the court that she was medically unfit to appear for arraignment.
Farouq, alongside a former Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Bashir Nura Alkali, and one Sani Mohammed, is facing a 21-count charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged breach of trust and abuse of office.
The anti-graft agency alleged that the defendants misappropriated about $1.3 million and N746.6 million in public funds. The charges were filed before the FCT High Court in Apo.
At the resumed hearing on Monday, EFCC counsel, Rotimi Jacobs, told the court that the matter was scheduled for arraignment but noted the absence of the first defendant, Farouq.
Jacobs recalled that the court had earlier issued a bench warrant against Farouq and Alkali in April, adding that Alkali later surrendered himself to the commission in compliance with the court order.
Counsel to the former minister, Oladipo Okpesheyi, informed the court that his client was currently in Egypt receiving medical treatment and was not fit to appear in court.
According to him, Farouq’s doctor advised that she would require about two months to recover, prompting a request for adjournment.
However, the presiding judge, Jude Onwuegbuzie, criticised what he described as delay tactics and warned that further action could be taken if the former minister fails to appear at the next hearing.
The court subsequently upheld the arrest warrant against Farouq and adjourned the case until June 8, 2026, for arraignment.
