Odemu Efe, a Nigerian from Warri Delta state has died at Addis Ababa’s Kaliti Prisons in Ethiopia.
Efe, who died on 13 July was among the 150 Nigerians detained in the prison on allegations of possession of hard drugs and money laundering.
The detainees are fed once a day with rice without sauce, according to multiple reports.
A concerned Nigerian, Miss Chika Nwachukwu, accused Nigerian officials of not showing concern about the welfare of the inmates, noting that there was lack of commitment on the part of the home government to facilitate their repatriation even when the Ethiopian authorities are willing to release the inmates.
“As we speak, some inmates are very sick and they are not getting good medication. Nobody knows whether they will survive since Odemu died in a similar condition.
“The Federal Government should please activate the relevant ministries and agencies to bring succour to these citizens languishing in a foreign land by bringing them back home. Most of them are ready to pay any cost incurred in the process, and also ready to face trial at home for the alleged offences for which they are being detained.”
Miss Nwachukwu appealed to chairman of the South-East Governors’ Forum and Governor of Ebonyi State, David Umahi, to mobilise stakeholders in the region to free the inmates, claiming that over eighty percent of them are from the Southeast.
According to the source, the governments of other African countries, including Kenya, Sudan, Eritrea, whose citizens were also trapped in the Kaliti prisons, activated their foreign missions in Ethiopia to set their nationals free. (The Nation)
