Ernest Bai Koroma: Ex-Sierra Leone president arrives Nigeria for medical care

Former president of Sierra Leone, Ernest Bai Koroma, charged with his alleged role in an attempted coup, arrived in Nigeria on Friday.

Koroma arrived in Abuja, the Nigerian capital, on Friday afternoon and was welcomed by the president of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Alieu Touray, and National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.

Nigeria had previously offered to allow the ex-president to enter temporarily, which he accepted.

The 70-year-old, who led the West African nation from 2007 to 2018, on Wednesday, received permission from judicial authorities to spend a maximum of three months in Nigeria for medical treatment.

Sierra Leone’s president, Julius Maada Bio, while addressing the nation on Thursday evening, called the court’s decision a “humanitarian gesture.”

Koroma, who has been under house arrest since December 9, was charged with four offences in early January.

The offences include treason concerning the events in late November 2023.

Recall that on November 26, armed men stormed a military armoury, two prisons, two police stations and two barracks, clashing with security forces.

21 people were reportedly killed and hundreds of prisoners escaped before the authorities were able to regain control after what they deemed a coup attempt by members of the armed forces.

Most of the people arrested in connection with the clashes were military personnel.