Kenyan ambassador to testify in Nnamdi Kanu abduction case dies in Abuja

Wilfred Machage collapsed at his Abuja residence on Saturday and died shortly thereafter, Kenya foreign affairs ministry said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kenya has announced the death of Ambassador Wilfred Machage, High Commissioner of Kenya to Nigeria.

According to a statement on the Ministry’s website, Mr Machage collapsed at his Abuja residence on Saturday and was rushed to the hospital, where he passed on at 12:30 p.m.

“Machage was appointed High Commissioner of Kenya to Nigeria by President Uhuru Kenyatta in January 2018 and accredited to 12 other countries within Central and Western Africa.

“He collapsed at home and was pronounced dead at the hospital after this unfortunate incident,” Kenya said. “The country has lost a dedicated compatriot.”

The incident came as Nnamdi Kanu’s family and UK and Kenya lawyers were preparing to make Mr Machage testify in the Biafra separatist leader’s abduction case in Nairobi.

Mr Machage had in July 2021 insisted that Kenya did not play any role in Mr Kanu’s abduction. But growing evidence compiled by Mr Kanu’s family and attorneys has pointed to Kenyan government’s involvement in abducting Mr Kanu around mid-June 2021 before forcibly repatriating him to Nigeria.

Mr Kanu’s family found his passport in Kenya days after he was paraded in Nigeria on charges of terrorism. His case has seen repeated adjournments in Nigeria since he was first arraigned in July 2021.