According to legal authorities who spoke with our correspondent, Benin has detained approximately 30 individuals, the majority of whom are soldiers, on charges related to a failed coup attempt earlier this month. Meanwhile, a number of mutineers remain at large.
Reports from AFP state that loyalist army forces, assisted by the Nigerian air force and French special forces, quickly crushed the attempted coup d’état that had been announced on national television on December 7.
The presumed coup commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Pascal Tigri, along with other deserting troops, are still at large, and multiple casualties have been reported.
Approximately thirty individuals were arraigned before a court-appointed special prosecutor for terrorism and economic offenses in Cotonou yesterday, according to the sources.
The day after their hearing, they were ordered to remain in pretrial detention; they later added.
Rumor has it that they are facing charges of “treason,” “murder,” and “endangering state security,” according to the sources.
Around the court, our reporter noticed a large number of security personnel.
On a separate note, following questioning, Chabi Yayi—son of current opposition figure and former Beninese president Thomas Boni Yayi—was released on Monday.
But for reasons nobody knows, the authorities are stepping up their questioning of opposition members, and he is still facing charges related to the coup attempt.
His father heads the opposing party, and he is a part of it.
According to multiple relatives who spoke with our correspondent over the phone today, Chabi Yayi has been granted freedom of movement.
However, sources within the judiciary have indicated that he is anticipated to re-present himself to the police on Thursday.
An internet activist named Steve Amoussou was convicted yesterday of maintaining a highly critical social media account of the government and sentenced to two years in prison by the Cotonou Court of Appeal.
Candide Azannai, a notable opposition political figure and former Beninese defense minister, was also arrested on Friday. Although he denounced the coup attempt, it is not certain whether his detention was connected to it.
The attempted coup was supported by Pan-Africanist and anti-Western figure Kemi Seba, who was also the subject of an international arrest order issued by Benin on Friday.
Crimes against state security and encouraging revolt are among the charges against him that are being pursued while he is not in the country.
“We shall see this fight through to the end,” Seba declared on social media.
Talon is accused of authoritarianism in a country that was previously lauded for its democratic dynamism, despite the fact that he is commended for promoting economic progress.
After serving the maximum two terms allowed, he is expected to relinquish power in April. Benin has been plagued by Islamist insurgency in the north in recent years.
Since the main opposition party was unable to field a candidate owing to a lack of sponsors, Romuald Wadagni, the current minister of finance, looks to be heading straight for the presidency and will most likely succeed him.
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