The Federal Government has expressed deep concern over the deteriorating health condition of Nigerian pastor, Benjamin Egbaji, who has been detained in a hospital in Cotonou, Benin Republic, for almost two years.
Egbaji, a businessman and cleric from Cross River State, has been serving a 10-year jail term since October 2023.
According to the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Egbaji’s health is steadily worsening and requires urgent and proper medical attention.
”Two independent medical experts appointed by the court in Benin Republic have recommended that he be transferred abroad for urgent medical care, as local interventions have proved ineffective, ” she said.
She also noted that the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made spirited efforts to rescue Egbaji, in line with the citizen diplomacy thrust of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
The Minister, alongside the country’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Olushegun Adjadi Bakari, visited Egbaji in the Cotonou hospital in early August and requested his transfer to Nigeria for medical care.
The Nigerian government called on the Benin authorities to release Egbaji so that he could receive better medical care and serve out his sentence in Nigeria.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu further urged the Beninese authorities to consent to Nigeria’s request, citing the longstanding cordial relations between the two countries founded on shared cultural heritage, bonds of trust, mutual respect, and a spirit of brotherhood.
The minister also emphasised that repatriating Egbaji would demonstrate the enduring spirit of fraternity and cooperation between Nigeria and the Republic of Benin.
She stated, “In the spirit of our longstanding friendship and in recognition of the humanitarian imperative, not being unmindful of the grievous nature of the offence he is charged with.
”We kindly request that Pastor Egbaji be repatriated to Nigeria to serve out the remainder of his sentence in a Nigerian Correctional Centre”, he added.
