Benin: Daniel Edah says he escaped a trap and calls for ‘dignified’ politics

In a statement posted on his Facebook page, he recounted being contacted on September 7 by a woman presenting herself as having an “impressive track record” in beauty pageants. She reportedly requested a meeting to discuss a “personal” matter, without specifying its nature.

After discussing it with his wife, Daniel Edah reportedly agreed in principle to a meeting, on condition that he be informed beforehand of what the discussion would cover. The woman’s response was said to be clear: she wanted to discuss it only face to face, without giving any indication of the subject. Finding this lack of clarity troubling, he says he ended the conversation on September 13.

Since then, he says he learned that individuals were seeking to implicate him in a compromising affair. He denounces what he calls a “diversion scheme” aimed at steering him away from his ambitions and from substantive debate. He is calling for a “dignified, responsible and forward-looking” politics, while asserting that those trying to destabilise him “are wasting their time.”

This stance comes at a strategic moment in his political trajectory. After long signalling his intention to run in the 2026 presidential election, he officially joined the opposition party Les Démocrates a few days ago, a political choice that fits into the broader dynamic of preparation for the upcoming vote.