A Nigerian businessman, Francis Chukwuma Uzoh, has publicly challenged what he described as false narratives surrounding dozens of Nigerians previously detained in Ethiopia, insisting that many of those affected were not criminals but victims of alleged abuses linked to Ethiopian authorities and Ethiopian Airlines.
In a video posted on X and seen by SaharaReporters, Uzoh said he was among the Nigerians caught up in the long-running controversy involving Nigerian travellers in Ethiopia, stressing that the portrayal of all affected individuals as criminals was misleading and unfair.
“Not every one of them is a criminal,” Uzoh said. “I’m among those people, and when I hear some Nigerians saying that Igbos are criminals, it is a lie.”
According to him, only a small percentage of the Nigerians involved in the matter had been convicted of any wrongdoing, while many others never appeared before any court and were never found guilty of any offence.
Uzoh recounted how he allegedly lost access to $70,000 while transiting through Ethiopia from Dubai.
