From Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja
The federal government has called on the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to expedite action on the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the Exchange of Sentenced Persons between both countries.
The Special Assistant on Communication and New Media to the Minister of State, Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Magnus Eze, said the minister made the call when she received in audience the Ethiopian Ambassador to Nigeria, Legesse Geremew Haile, in her office at Tafawa Balewa House, Abuja.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu expressed the government’s displeasure over the spate of embarrassment and harassment suffered by Nigerians, including those with official and diplomatic passports in Addis Ababa.
The minister reminded the Ethiopian ambassador that the Nigerian side had concluded with reflection of the Ethiopian observations in the draft MOU on Exchange of Sentenced Persons between both countries and wondered why the signing of the MOU was being delayed despite assurances at their meeting of March 6.
She further highlighted with deep concern the plight of Nigerian inmates in Ethiopia, who, she said, were not having access to medical care, among other challenges.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu also noted the overwhelming challenges the situation has posed to the Ethiopian government.
While expressing dismay that a Nigerian recently died in an Ethiopian prison, Odumegwu-Ojukwu declared that as a government deeply committed to citizen diplomacy, the federal government would not want a repeat of such an ugly incident.
“Our people don’t want to hear that another Nigerian inmate died in an Ethiopian prison,” Odumegwu-Ojukwu said.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu further decried the continued delay in returning monies seized from Nigerian businessmen by the Ethiopian government even after the country’s Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, at the 40th Session of the Executive Council of the African Union held in February 2022, had granted amnesty to all African travellers whose monies were seized at the Bole International Airport due to non-declaration of the amount over and above three thousand United States dollars, as provided by then Ethiopian law.
She regretted that of the 25 Nigerians whose monies were seized at the time, only 15 had been approved for refund due to the stringent conditions put by the Ethiopian side for the refunds.
The minister also noted that even at that, only two persons had actually been refunded their seized money.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu cited the pathetic case of one Mr Francis Chukwuma Uzoh, whose $70,000 was seized by the Ethiopian authorities.
She bemoaned that despite meeting all the conditions, Francis had yet to be refunded since 2022.
Consequently, Mr Francis has become desolate, homeless, abandoned by family, hugely indebted and a shadow of his former self.
The minister urged the Ethiopian envoy to press for a last chance for the Ethiopian government to refund Mr Francis his $70,000 while he is still alive, “so they don’t use the money to bury him when he has gone.”
Additionally, the minister noted that the visa waiver for holders of official and diplomatic passports was tied to the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) signed by the two countries.
Following what Nigerians faced at Addis Ababa, Odumegwu-Ojukwu accused Ethiopia of unilaterally withdrawing from the MoU without notifying Nigeria.
According to her, it is of great concern because Addis is a hub, and many Nigerians have adopted Ethiopian Airlines as the airline of choice.
Regardless, the minister reiterated Nigeria’s commitment to strengthening bilateral relations with Ethiopia, assuring that the 4th Session of the Nigeria-Ethiopia Joint Commission would soon be held in Abuja.
Responding, Haile said that the visa waiver agreement was still in place but needed ratification by the country’s House of Representatives.
Haile, however, said that the embassy issued visas to Nigerians with official and diplomatic passports, pointing out that the problem is actually when the applicant is with a regular passport.
“The visa on arrival has neither been withdrawn nor abrogated,” he said, stressing, “We are very close to Nigeria. The Ethiopian government views the Federal Republic of Nigeria as a very strategic partner.”
He also thanked the Nigerian government for the additional seven slots recently approved for the Ethiopian airline on the Lagos route.