Decision on clemency not final – FG
The federal government said yesterday that it had not completed the process for the clemency recently announced for Maryam Sanda and 81 others. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had granted a presidential pardon and clemency to 175 persons following the endorsement of the recommendations of the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy (PACPM) by […]
The federal government said yesterday that it had not completed the process for the clemency recently announced for Maryam Sanda and 81 others.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had granted a presidential pardon and clemency to 175 persons following the endorsement of the recommendations of the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy (PACPM) by the National Council of State which met Thursday last week.
The committee, according to a statement by a presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, had reviewed 294 cases, recommending clemency for 82 inmates, pardon for 2, reduction of prison terms for 65, commutation of 7 death sentences to life imprisonment and posthumous pardon for 15 ex-convicts, including the Ogoni Nine.
In a statement yesterday, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, emphasised that the exercise had not been concluded.
This is just as some lawyers have alleged that the announcement of the clemency review was an attempt to hoodwink Nigerians.
There had been public outcry over the list of beneficiaries of the presidential pardon/clemency, with many Nigerians questioning the rationale behind the decision.
Fagbemi also clarified that no inmate approved for clemency under the recent exercise had been released from custody.
He stated: “The process remains at the final administrative stage, which includes a standard review to ensure that all names and recommendations fully comply with established legal and procedural requirements before any instrument of release is issued.
“It is important to note that the last stage of the exercise, after approval by the Council of State, is the issuance of the instrument for the implementation of the decision concerning each beneficiary. This stage affords an opportunity for a final look at the list for remedial purposes, if any, before the instrument is forwarded to the Controller-General of Corrections for necessary action.
“This verification process is part of the standard protocol and reflects the government’s commitment to transparency and due diligence.
“The Honourable Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice appreciates the public’s vigilance and constructive feedback, which continue to strengthen institutional integrity. Public engagement is always welcome, as it demonstrates that Nigerians care deeply about justice and good governance.
“There is no delay in the process; it is simply following the law to the letter to ensure that only those duly qualified benefit from the President’s mercy. As soon as all legal and procedural checks are concluded, the public will be duly informed. The rule of law does not rush; it ensures fairness.”
The beneficiaries
Among the 82 persons granted clemency are Maryam Sanda, aged 37, sentenced to death in 2020 for culpable homicide and had spent six years, eight months at Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre; Aluagwu Lawrence, aged 47, sentenced for Indian hemp (selling) in 2015; Ben Friday, aged 60, sentenced to 3 years or N1.3 million fine for marijuana in 2023; Oroke Micheal Chibueze, aged 21, sentenced to 5 years (cannabis sativa) in 2023; Kelvin Christopher Smith, aged 42, sentenced to 4 years for importing cocaine in 2023; Azubuike Jeremiah Emeka, aged 31, sentenced in 2021 to 5 years or N3 million fine for importing cocaine.
Also on the clemency list are Akinrinnade Akinwande Adebiyi, aged 47, sentenced in 2023 to 3 years for dealing in Tramadol; Ahmed Adeyemo, aged 38, sentenced to 15 years for cannabis possession. Adeniyi Jimoh, aged 31years, sentenced to 15 years for drugs in 2015 and served nine years at Kirikiri; Seun Omirinde, aged 39, sentenced to 15 years for drugs in 2015, served nine years at Kirikiri; Adesanya Olufemi Paul, aged 61, sentenced to 14 years for theft and served eight years; Ife Yusuf, aged 37, sentenced for human trafficking in 2019, served six years at Kirikiri.
The beneficiaries of the presidential clemency also include Daniel Bodunwa, aged 43, sentenced in 2018 to 10 years for fraudulent intent to forge a land receipt, served six years in jail; Fidelis Michael, aged 40, sentenced to 5 years for cannabis sativa; Suru Akande, aged 52, sentenced to 5 years for cannabis sativa; Safiyanu Umar, aged 56, sentenced to 5 years without the option of a fine for possessing 5kg of Cannabis sativa, 2023; Dahiru Abdullahi, aged 46, sentenced in 2016 to 21 years for possession of 3 pistols and had spent 10 years in jail; Hamza Abubakar, aged 37, sentenced to 5 years for Indian hemp (selling), 2022; Rabiu Alhassan Dawaki, aged 52, sentenced in 2020 to 7 years for criminal breach of trust; Mujibu Muhammad, aged 30, sentenced in 2022 to 5 years, no option for a fine for cannabis; Emmanuel Eze, aged 49, sentenced in 2022 to 5 years for heroine.
Those granted pardon include Farouk M. Lawan, aged 62, sentenced to five years in 2021 for corrupt practices; Nweke Francis Chibueze, aged 44, serving a life sentence at Kirikiri for drug related offence; Dr Nwogu Peters, aged 67; serving a 17-year jail term for fraud.
Those granted posthumous pardon included Sir Herbert Macaulay, banned from public office for misappropriation of funds and sentenced in 1913 by the British colonialists; Major-General Mamman Jiya Vatsa, age 46, sentenced in 1986 for treason over an alleged coup plot and the Ogoni nine.
Lawyers fault clemency review
Lawyers, who spoke to Daily Trust yesterday, faulted the announcement of the clemency review, describing it as an attempt to hoodwink Nigerians.
Gabriel Egbule said in the history of granting of pardon, this is the first time the process is being subjected to a review after the announcement.
“What the Attorney General of the Federation said is an afterthought.
“It is unfortunate that in Nigeria nothing happens; if it were in saner climes, somebody would have lost his or her job. This is shambolic and condemnable,” he stated.
For Jibrin Jibrin Esq, the review is strange because the committee ought to have recommended to the president and the Council of State after verifying the details of all convicted persons before the president would act and approve the same.
“As you know, the federal government did not only inform Nigerians of the decision of President Bola Tinubu to grant the pardon and clemency, but it went public with their names. So, we are now having a case of medicine after death by saying that the process has not been concluded.
“This is not tenable, not to be believed, and too embarrassing to the government,” he said.
Jibrin also questioned the morality and propriety of pardoning convicts “whose past escapades pricked the conscience of the nation.”
For his part, EMD Umukoro said the procedure is for the president “to exercise the powers after consultation with the Advisory Council on the Prerogative of Mercy and the National Council of State, after which it is gazetted and forwarded to the correction service for implementation.
“Once that has been done, the next thing is to gazette it and at that point, the matter comes to a close because the formalisation has been done. Previous governments have done this like former presidents Shehu Shagari, Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan.
“So, there is no hard and fast rule about it. In the instant case, it is obvious that those in government from the president and those around him, including the AGF, once that list was released and it was greeted with widespread criticism, they had a rethink and that is what occasioned this new development.
“I think on one hand, it is good that they are listening to the reactions and the voices of the citizens, but on the other hand, it shows that the process and the consultation and the exercise were not done objectively and dispassionately,” he said.
However, Dayo Akinlaja (SAN) said nobody should complain about the decision of the government since it is an executive act that is within its whims and caprices.”