FG Explains Plan to Repatriate 98 Nigerians Jailed in Ethiopia

• The Federal Government says its agreement with Ethiopia to transfer sentenced prisoners is aimed at allowing incarcerated Nigerians complete their jail terms at home under humane conditions.

The Federal Government has clarified that its recently signed Transfer of Sentenced Persons Agreement with Ethiopia is designed to allow convicted Nigerians serving prison terms in the country to complete their sentences in Nigeria.

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, said the agreement aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s citizen diplomacy agenda and reflects the government’s commitment to protecting the welfare of Nigerians abroad.

She dismissed reports circulating online claiming that 136 Nigerians are currently imprisoned in Ethiopia, describing the figures and details being shared as inaccurate.

According to the minister, the agreement specifically concerns 98 Nigerian inmates currently held in Ethiopia’s Kaliti and Aba Samuel maximum-security prisons.

Odumegwu-Ojukwu explained that the arrangement would not result in the release of the prisoners upon their return to Nigeria. Instead, they will continue serving their jail terms in Nigerian correctional facilities under the terms of the agreement.

She noted that many of the inmates have spent years requesting a transfer due to difficult living conditions, health concerns, limited medical care, poor feeding, language barriers, and restricted access to legal and family support.

The minister revealed that four Nigerian inmates died while both countries were working to finalise the agreement.

DON’T MISS: Alex Otti Unveils Aircraft Named After Chinua Achebe, Obi of Onitsha

Addressing concerns over the background of the prisoners, she stressed that crime has no ethnic or regional identity, noting that the affected inmates come from different parts of Nigeria.

She further explained that the agreement includes provisions preventing Nigeria from granting amnesty or pardons to transferred inmates without the consent of Ethiopia, the sentencing country.

The Federal Government maintained that the initiative is intended to ensure that Nigerian citizens serving prison terms abroad can do so closer to their families and under more humane conditions while still fulfilling their legal obligations.