Arrest: Prof Usman Yusuf’s Family Seeks US Diplomatic Intervention
The wife and sons of Prof Usman Yusuf, former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), have formally requested diplomatic intervention from the United States government to secure his immediate release.
In a letter dated February 18, 2025, Iftikar Abdallah Yusuf, the professor’s wife, addressed the American Embassy under the title, “Re: Request For Consular Assistance For My Husband, Professor Usman Yusuf.” Simultaneously, the couple’s three sons, Abdullah, Adnan, and Luqman, sent a joint letter to Senator Richard J. Durbin, representing Chicago, Illinois, titled, “Re: Request for the Immediate Release of Our Father, Prof Usman Yusuf.”
Prof Yusuf is currently facing a five-count charge brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The allegations include embezzlement and the approval of undue advantages during his tenure as NHIS boss from 2016 to 2019. One key charge concerns approving the purchase of a vehicle for N49,197,750, exceeding the budgeted N30 million. Prof Yusuf has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Justice Chinyere Nwecheonwu, presiding over the case, adjourned the bail ruling to February 27, while ordering the defendant’s detention at the Nigerian Correctional Service facility in Kuje, Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
In her letter, Mrs. Yusuf implored the American Embassy to secure her husband’s release and ensure his rights and access to a fair trial are respected. Highlighting the family’s dual citizenship status, she emphasized that her husband is being unlawfully detained and subjected to political persecution.
“My husband’s constitutionally guaranteed rights have been repeatedly violated by President Bola Tinubu’s government. He was forcefully abducted from our home by heavily armed EFCC personnel without a formal invitation or arrest warrant. He was also denied phone calls to his family and lawyers, refused bail, and incarcerated at Kuje Prison,” she stated.
Mrs. Yusuf expressed further concerns about her husband’s health, noting that he has been denied access to his doctors. She linked his detention to his outspoken criticism of President Tinubu’s economic policies, which she argued have imposed “unbearable hardships on Nigerians.”
The sons echoed similar sentiments in their letter to Senator Durbin, emphasizing their concerns over their father’s health and accusing the EFCC of engaging in political persecution.
“Our father’s abduction and detention by the EFCC, denial of bail, and incarceration in Kuje Prison are nothing but political persecution because he has been a very vocal critic of President Tinubu’s economic policies that have been inflicting unbearable hardships on Nigerians,” they wrote.
The family is seeking urgent diplomatic assistance to ensure Prof Usman Yusuf’s safety and prompt release, as well as a transparent legal process moving forward.