Usama and his friends, young lads in their twenties left Sokoto by road, wide-eyed, full of hope and ambition, believing they were stepping into opportunity when they travelled to Abidjan for their trade in phone parts.
They were arrested under suspicious circumstances and detained in MACA prison, Abidjan without charge or trial since last year. Far away from home, without language access or familiar support systems, they were literally abandoned to rot away in Prison.
Their unfortunate circumstances were brought to my attention in April this year and when I contacted our Embassy in Abidjan, I was dismayed to discover that they had not even been notified of their arrest by the authorities there.
The conditions in prison were very difficult, as expected, and one of detainees, Usama Murtala became ill, and with poor medical attention his health worsened over time.
With sustained engagements by our Mission, and diplomatic interventions by our Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we are happy to secure the release of these citizens.
It is a bittersweet moment. Usama, whose health condition had worsened by then, was overjoyed to be finally free.
Our officers at the Nigeria High Commission made spirited efforts to save his life by rushing him to a Critical Care Hospital for treatment, but alas, it was too late for Usama.
He died the next morning, far from home and family, oblivious to the fact that his mother and siblings in Sokoto, were excitedly preparing for his return.
It was, for me, a heartbreaking moment of engagement with his family. Usama would not be coming home.
Usama had seen freedom but did not live long enough to return home and enjoy it.
Usama was buried the day after, with his co-detainees and officers of our Embassy present, in a cemetery in the outskirts of Abidjan in accordance with Islamic rites as his parents requested.
Today, we are bringing home the survivors of this unfortunate incident. Young men who set out with hope, but their dreams were interrupted in ways they never expected.
This is not just one story. It is a reflection of many.
Many of our prisoners overseas are vulnerable young people who leave home in search of opportunity, caught in a web of judicial or unjust systems they do not fully grasp and are subsumed under its weight.
Usama’s story remains a painful reminder of how fragile life can be for young people who set out on these journeys which carry both risk and promise and the difficulties in navigating unfamiliar systems in an unfamiliar environment.
It is a human story of youth, of migration, of survival, of hope, of the cost of dreams carried far away, and of loss.
It mirrors the pain that sits in the silence of families waiting for someone who will never walk through the door…buried far from the land where he was meant to rest.
This is my song for Usama, a tribute to all who left home in hope and returned only in memory.
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.
This is the reality many of our citizens face when they travel in search of greener pastures. Many are young people whose paths take unexpected and tragic turns. This is yet another life, cut short in prime. We will be taking up Usama’s case with the Ivorian Authorities.
To the survivors of this harrowing ordeal Aliyu Malami, Nasiru Umar, Shamsu Abubakar, Sa’adu Bello, Lyman Mohammed, we will be there to receive you and celebrate your triumph over adversity.
In advance, we say, “welcome home”.
May the Soul of Usama Murtala Rest in Peace.
Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu is Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.
