FCT High Court Sets Aside Bench Warrant Against Kabiru Turaki SAN

…Prosecution Offers No Opposition as Senior Lawyer Appears Voluntarily

The High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Maitama has set aside the bench warrant issued against Kabiru Turaki SAN, a factional chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Justice Peter Kekemeke vacated the warrant on Wednesday following an oral application by the defendant’s counsel, Chief Chris Uche SAN. The prosecution counsel, Usman Rabiu, did not oppose the application.

The bench warrant had been issued earlier over Turaki’s failure to appear in court in a lone charge of providing false information to the police. However, with the senior lawyer appearing voluntarily—without being arrested or compelled—the court ruled that the purpose of the warrant had been satisfied.

“The essence of the bench warrant was to produce the defendant in court,” Justice Kekemeke stated. “Since the defendant has appeared voluntarily, without being arrested, and the application not being contested, the bench warrant is hereby rescinded.”

The case has been adjourned to April 22, 2026.

Turaki, a former Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, is one of the prominent figures in the ongoing leadership crisis within the PDP, where he leads a faction opposed to the national leadership structure. His legal team described the rescission of the warrant as a vindication, emphasizing that their client has always been willing to cooperate with the judicial process.

The prosecution’s decision not to contest the application effectively closed the matter of the warrant, allowing the case to proceed on its substantive merits at the next adjourned date.