Nigeria says it will formally lodge a protest with authorities in Côte d’Ivoire over the detention and death of a Nigerian trader, Usama Murtala, who died in Abidjan shortly after being released from MACA prison without charge or trial.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu confirmed the move on Tuesday, stating that Nigeria “will be taking up Usama’s case with the Ivorian authorities” following what she described as a “truly heartbreaking” incident.
Usama, in his twenties, and five friends left Sokoto by road for Abidjan to trade in phone parts. They were arrested under “suspicious circumstances” and held at MACA prison since last year.
Dateline Nigeria reports that Usama is one of six Nigerians released from detention in the West African country after sustained diplomatic and consular engagement by the Nigerian Embassy in Abidjan. The five survivors — Aliyu Malami, Nasiru Umar, Shamsu Abubakar, Sa’adu Bello, and Lyman Mohammed — are being repatriated to Nigeria.
The Minister said she was “dismayed to discover” in April that the Nigerian Embassy in Abidjan had not been notified of their arrest by Ivorian authorities, contrary to consular norms.
The group was detained without charge or trial, with no language access or legal support. “Far away from home, without language access or familiar support systems, they were literally abandoned to rot away in Prison,” Odumegwu-Ojukwu said.
After sustained engagements by the Nigerian Mission and diplomatic interventions by the Foreign Ministry, the six Nigerians were released recently. By then, Usama’s health had deteriorated due to illness and poor medical attention in custody.
Nigerian High Commission officers took him to a Critical Care Hospital, but he died the next morning. He was buried a day later in Abidjan in accordance with Islamic rites, as requested by his parents in Sokoto who had been “excitedly preparing for his return.”
Odumegwu-Ojukwu said Usama’s death highlights the plight of vulnerable Nigerians abroad “caught in a web of judicial or unjust systems they do not fully grasp.”
“This is yet another life, cut short in prime,” she said. “We will be taking up Usama’s case with the Ivorian Authorities.”
The Minister did not disclose the specific diplomatic channels being used, but her statement signals a formal protest over the lack of consular notification, prolonged detention without trial, and inadequate medical care.
Meanwhile, the five survivors — Aliyu Malami, Nasiru Umar, Shamsu Abubakar, Sa’adu Bello, and Lyman Mohammed — are being repatriated to Nigeria. “Young men who set out with hope, but their dreams were interrupted in ways they never expected,” Odumegwu-Ojukwu said.
The Minister stressed that the case reflects a broader pattern: “Many of our prisoners overseas are vulnerable young people who leave home in search of opportunity… subsumed under its weight.”
She added: “I pray that he is not reduced to a mere statistic… just another life wasted by a system in a foreign country who gave no chance to a young lad who left Sokoto by road carrying hope in his pocket and a future in his heart.”
Nigeria’s protest comes as both countries maintain close bilateral ties within ECOWAS. The Foreign Ministry is expected to seek explanations on the circumstances of the arrest, the failure to notify the Embassy, and the conditions that led to Usama’s death.