Olivier Allochémé, journalist and editor of the daily newspaper L’Evénement Précis, was arrested at his workplace on October 9, 2025. He is being prosecuted for “publishing false news via social media” following an editorial titled “The UPR is over”, which he published on his Facebook page in June 2025. After being questioned by the special prosecutor at the Court for the Repression of Economic Offences and Terrorism (CRIET), he was placed in pre-trial detention on October 16, 2025.
In the post, which has since been deleted, Olivier Allochémé alleged that Adrien Houngbédji, former Speaker of Benin’s National Assembly, had fallen out with President Patrice Talon. He further claimed that President Talon had placed Houngbédji under surveillance through his wife. The publication also referred to alleged phone cloning, suspicions of poisoning, and pressure exerted on tenants occupying buildings owned by Adrien Houngbédji. According to the journalist, these actions had led Houngbédji to consider abandoning plans to merge his party, the Parti du Renouveau Démocratique (PRD), with the Progressive Union Party (UP).
The authorities deemed the information false and subsequently opened an investigation through the Criminal Investigation Department, requiring the journalist to provide evidence to substantiate his claims.
After nearly two weeks in detention, Olivier Allochémé appeared on Thursday, October 30, 2025, before the Second Criminal Chamber of the CRIET. The hearing lasted only a few minutes, during which he was formally indicted, before the case was adjourned to January 15, 2026. No substantive examination of the case has yet taken place.
On the eve of the hearing, on the evening of Wednesday, October 29, 2025, the journalist published a message on his Facebook page from his detention cell in which he expressed a public mea culpa. He acknowledged his mistake, stating: “With the utmost respect, I hereby make a public mea culpa following the publication, on my personal Facebook page, of posts containing allegations affecting the honour and reputation of the Head of State.” He further admitted that the information consisted of “reported claims” published without adequate verification or adherence to basic journalistic ethics.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, October 29, 2025, in Cotonou, the Platform of Media Promoters and Actors for Development (PADeM-Benin) appealed to President Patrice Talon to grant clemency to Olivier Allochémé. “We humbly appeal to the President of the Republic, on our knees, to grant pardon to our colleague,” said Hilarion Kingnon, president of the platform, visibly moved.
While upholding the importance of professional ethics and fact-based journalism, the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) is of the view that custodial detention for publication-related offences is a disproportionate response and risks undermining press freedom. In this spirit, the MFWA joins the Beninese media community in calling on the authorities of Benin to secure the journalist’s immediate release and to give due consideration to his public mea culpa.
