Nigerian cleric, Pastor Benjamin Egbaji, incarcerated in Benin Republic, was on Thursday released following a presidential pardon granted by President Patrice Talon.
Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Amb. Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, confirmed this in a statement issued by her media aide, Dr Magnus Eze.
She said Egbaji, a businessman from Cross River, was accused of an offence and detained under dehumanising conditions at a hospital in Cotonou.
According to her, the cleric spent over two years in detention as his health deteriorated before he was eventually transferred to prison custody.
She explained that a gazetted presidential amnesty dated Dec. 17, 2025, provided the legal basis for securing his eventual release.
“This followed sustained diplomatic pressure from my office, including my visit to the detained citizen at a Cotonou hospital in August 2025.
“A viral photograph showing Egbaji chained to a hospital bed provoked outrage among Nigerians and triggered immediate diplomatic engagement by the ministry,” she said.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu attributed the breakthrough to President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to citizen diplomacy as a core thrust of his foreign policy.
She said the action aligned with the diaspora pillar of the Democracy, Demography, Diaspora and Development, 4-Ds, foreign policy framework.
The minister stressed the need for Egbaji to receive proper medical care following years of incarceration and declining health.
She added that Nigeria had requested his release to enable him serve any remaining custodial term within the country.
According to her, the development demonstrated the enduring spirit of fraternity and cooperation between Nigeria and Benin.
She quoted the Chairman of Nigerians In Diaspora Organisation, Benin chapter, Alhaji Munir, as commending the ministry’s diplomatic intervention.
Munir said the effort showed uncommon commitment to safeguarding the welfare of Nigerians living abroad.
He also praised President Tinubu for protecting Nigerians overseas and urged intensified diplomatic efforts to free innocent citizens jailed abroad.
