Former President of Sierra Leone Ernest Koroma has been granted permission to seek medical care in Nigeria.
A Sierra Leone High Court granted him permission, report says bbc report.
Koroma was arrested and charged with treason, alleged treason and two counts of harboring suspects. He was later granted conditional bail, including that he could not leave his house unless permitted by the Inspector General of Police.
The Sierra Leone government had previously said that the hearing of the case against the former president would resume today, January 17, when they would be ready to bring witnesses.
The permission granted to Koroma comes amid rumors that he had agreed to go into exile in Nigeria if all charges against him were dropped.
According to the BBC, anonymous sources at the United Nations and ECOWAS said the sub-regional bloc (ECOWAS) had negotiated a deal for Koroma to go into exile in Nigeria if the charges were dropped.
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The BBC also saw a letter saying Koroma had accepted the deal, which would allow him to continue enjoying the benefits of a former president even while in Nigeria.
However, Sierra Leone’s Foreign Minister Timothy Kabba told the BBC that the government did not support the proposal, describing it as a “unilateral proposal” by the president of the ECOWAS Commission.
Koroma was president of the West African country for 11 years until 2018, when he was succeeded by current president Julius Bio.