JOHANNESBURG - Firebrand anti‑Western activist Kemi Seba, wanted by Benin over a foiled coup plot, said on Monday he feared for his life if sent back to the West African country.
Born in France to parents from Benin, Seba was arrested in South Africa last month alongside his teenage son and a South African man for breaching immigration laws after overstaying his three‑month visitor visa.
Benin issued an international warrant for the influencer's arrest on December 12 after he supported a foiled coup in which mutinous soldiers claimed on television to have overthrown President Patrice Talon.
Appearing at a bail hearing in a Pretoria court, Seba said he had not returned to Benin since May 2024, citing fears for his life and political persecution.
"I have a well-founded fear, not only perceived, but real that my life would be in danger if I were to return to Benin under its current administration," his lawyer, Bill Kobras, read from an affidavit in court.
Seba said this was why he had overstayed his South African visitor permit -- which expired in late February -- and confirmed his intention to seek asylum.
An application was filed with South Africa's Department of Home Affairs on April 28, he said.
"My overstay should be considered within the asylum protection framework and not merely as an immigration contravention," he said.
The anti-Western influencer, whose real name is Stellio Gilles Robert Capo Chichi, has around 1.5 million followers on social media.
A prominent critic of France's role in West Africa's political, economic and military affairs, Seba has increasingly aligned himself with Russia, portraying Moscow as a counterweight to Western influence in the Sahel.
The Beninese lost his French citizenship in 2024 and holds a diplomatic passport issued by Niger's ruling junta, which took power in a 2023 coup.
Niger had offered to provide him accommodation in South Africa if he were granted bail, he said.
The case was postponed to May 19 for final arguments and bail decision, with the trio remaining in police custody.
- AFP