President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the grant of presidential pardon and clemency to 175 convicts and former convicts, including posthumous pardons for Major-General Mamman Jiya Vatsa, environmental activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, and the other members of the Ogoni Nine.
according to Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, who signed the statement, the President also posthumously pardoned Sir Herbert Macaulay, correcting what he described as a historic injustice committed by British colonial authorities in 1913.
The announcement was made following the presentation of the report of the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy, chaired by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), during the Council of State meeting chaired by President Tinubu.
According to Fagbemi, the President exercised his constitutional powers of mercy based on recommendations that took into account remorse, good conduct, age, ill health, and demonstrated efforts at rehabilitation, including enrolment in the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) and acquisition of vocational skills while in custody.
Out of the total number, two inmates and 15 former convicts (including 11 deceased) received full pardons. Eighty-two inmates benefited from clemency, 65 had their sentences commuted, while seven inmates on death row had their sentences reduced to life imprisonment.
Among those granted clemency were illegal miners, drug offenders, and white-collar criminals, as well as convicts who demonstrated genuine remorse and rehabilitation.
Notably, Maryam Sanda, who was sentenced to death in 2020 for culpable homicide, received presidential clemency based on her good conduct in prison and family pleas citing the welfare of her two young children.
Also pardoned were former public officials and professionals such as Dr. Nwogu Peters, Hon. Farouk Lawan, Barr. Hussaini Alhaji Umar, and Professor Magaji Garba, all of whom were convicted for corruption-related offences but had served substantial portions of their sentences and shown repentance.
The President’s gesture also covered dozens of foreign nationals, elderly inmates, and rehabilitated drug convicts, with some having their fines waived and others having sentences significantly reduced.
Among those whose death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment were Emmanuel Baba, Moses Ayodele Olorunfemi, and Benjamin Ekeze, all cited for good conduct and remorse after spending between seven and thirteen years on death row.
In a symbolic act of reconciliation, Tinubu’s decision extended mercy to the Ogoni Nine, including Ken Saro-Wiwa, Baribor Bera, and Barinem Kiobel, whose execution in 1995 sparked global outrage. Their victims — Chief Albert Badey, Chief Edward Kobaru, Chief Samuel Orage, and Chief Theophilus Orage — were also honoured.
The President also commuted the life sentence of Major S.A. Akubo, convicted in 2009 for illegal arms removal, to 20 years imprisonment, acknowledging his good conduct and rehabilitation.
Fagbemi stated that the exercise was aimed at decongesting correctional facilities, reinforcing Nigeria’s commitment to justice tempered with mercy, and encouraging genuine reform among inmates.
The list also showed that Senator Ikra Aliyu Bilbis signed an undertaking to take responsibility for the rehabilitation and empowerment of all the illegal miners granted clemency.
Onanuga said the Presidential Pardon and Clemency initiative reflects Tinubu’s broader commitment to humanitarian governance, restorative justice, and national healing,
