.’29.2% of those pardoned were convicted for drug-related crimes’
.As ADC condemns president
Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has faulted President Bola Tinubu’s pardon of 175 convicts, saying the clemency diminished the sanctity of justice and also sent a dangerous signal to the public and the international community abound the value the incumbent administration upholds.
The 2023 Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential candidate, noted offences such as drug trafficking, kidnapping, murder, and corruption constitute grave crimes.
Atiku made the remark in a statement on his verified X account, titled, ‘Tinubu’s Reckless Use of Presidential Pardon Undermines Justice and Emboldens Criminality.’
The Presidency on Saturday had released the comprehensive list of the 175 convicts and former convicts that were granted presidential pardon and clemency by President Tinubu.
The list included high-profile cases, illegal miners, white-collar offenders, and those convicted of capital crimes.
The names contained in a statement issued by the presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, in Abuja, it was stated, reflect the President’s commitment to justice, rehabilitation, and correcting historical wrongs.
According to the statement, the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy, chaired by Attorney-General and Justice Minister Prince Lateef Fagbemi, recommended the release of two inmates, pardoned 15 former convicts (11 posthumously), granted clemency to 82 inmates, and commuted sentences for 65 others.
Additionally, seven inmates on death row had their sentences reduced to life imprisonment.
Among the beneficiaries are prominent figures such as Major General Mamman Jiya Vatsa, posthumously pardoned for an alleged 1986 coup plot, and Ken Saro-Wiwa alongside the Ogoni Eight, convicted in a controversial 1995 murder case.
The pardon also extended to Sir Herbert Macaulay, a Nigerian nationalist wronged by British colonial authorities in 1913 for alleged misappropriation of funds. “This move corrects long-standing injustices, honoring their contributions to Nigeria’s history,” the statement submitted.
It further stated that Maryam Sanda, sentenced to death in 2020 for culpable homicide, received clemency after demonstrating remorse and good conduct during her six years at Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre.
Her family’s plea, highlighting the welfare of her two children, played a pivotal role in the decision.
However, Atiku described the clemency has a way of emboldens criminality in the country.
Atiku said, “The recent announcement of a presidential pardon by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has, as expected, provoked outrage across the nation.
“Ordinarily, the power of presidential pardon is a solemn prerogative, a moral and constitutional instrument designed to temper justice with mercy and to underscore the humanity of the state. When properly exercised, it elevates justice and strengthens public faith in governance.
“Regrettably, the latest pardon issued by the Tinubu administration has done the very opposite. The decision to extend clemency to individuals convicted of grave crimes such as drug trafficking, kidnapping, murder, and corruption not only diminishes the sanctity of justice but also sends a dangerous signal to the public and the international community about the values this government upholds.
“At a time when Nigeria continues to reel under the weight of insecurity, moral decay, and a surge in drug-related offences, it is both shocking and indefensible that the presidency would prioritize clemency for those whose actions have directly undermined national stability and social order.
“Particularly worrisome is the revelation that 29.2% percent of those pardoned were convicted for drug-related crimes at a time when our youth are being destroyed by narcotics, and our nation is still struggling to cleanse its image from the global stain of drug offences.
“Even more disturbing is the moral irony that this act of clemency is coming from a President whose own past remains clouded by unresolved and unexplained issues relating to the forfeiture of thousands of dollars to the United States government over drug-related investigations. It is, therefore, no surprise that this administration continues to demonstrate a worrying tolerance for individuals associated with criminal enterprise.
“A presidential pardon is meant to symbolize restitution and moral reform. Instead, what we have witnessed is a mockery of the criminal justice system, an affront to victims, a demoralization of law enforcement, and a grave injury to the conscience of the nation.
“Clemency must never be confused with complicity. When a government begins to absolve offenders of the very crimes it claims to be fighting, it erodes the moral authority of leadership and emboldens lawlessness.”
Meanwhile, The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has condemned President Bola Tinubu’s recent decision to grant presidential pardons to dozens of convicted drug traffickers and smugglers.
In a strongly worded statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party described the action as “pathetic and a national disgrace,” warning that the move undermines Nigeria’s anti-drug efforts, encourages crime, and further tarnishes Nigeria’s image in the eyes of the world.
The full statement read:
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) finds as pathetic and an act of immense national disgrace the recent presidential pardon and clemency granted to several convicted criminals by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
It amounts to a most irresponsible abuse of the presidential power of prerogative of mercy to grant express pardon to dozens of convicts held for drug trafficking, smuggling, and related offences, especially when most of these convicts have barely served two years in jail for offences that carry a penalty of life imprisonment.
According to official media statements, it appears that all it takes to get presidential clemency for even the worst of crimes in Nigeria, including drug trafficking, gun running, and murder, is to “show remorse and learn skills.”
Pardons and clemency are granted for their social utility and to correct perceived miscarriages of justice, and to convicts who have paid their debts to society. But we wonder what Nigeria stands to benefit from this act of clemency to convicts serving life sentences who have barely served two years.
For the avoidance of doubt, Nigeria is still regarded as a major transit point for illicit drugs while we face a serious national pandemic of drug use, especially among our youths. Several reports have it that Nigeria’s drug use stands at an estimated 14.4%, almost three times the global average of 5.5%.
For years, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and other security agencies have risked life and limb to combat this problem, dismantle illicit drug networks, intercept consignments, prosecute offenders, and secure convictions. The men and women in these agencies have laboured under enormous risk and pressure to protect the public from the scourge of addiction, trafficking, and related crimes that carry some of the harshest penalties in Nigerian law, precisely because of their devastating impact on public health, youth development, and national security. Granting clemency to individuals convicted under such laws therefore strikes at the very foundation of Nigeria’s legal and moral stance against narcotics and makes a mockery of the gallant efforts of officers fighting the battle against narcotics and illicit drugs.
These pardons also send reverberations beyond Nigeria’s borders. They undercut our standing among global partners in the fight against drug trafficking and give the unfortunate impression to the rest of the world that our country, under President Tinubu, has particular sympathy for drug dealers and that Nigeria is a risk-free jurisdiction for traffickers in narcotics.
Make no mistake, with this mass clemency for drug dealers, President Tinubu and the APC are redefining the standard of morality in our country. They are gradually transforming Nigeria into a country where anything goes, where even the worst of crimes attract no punishment beyond a few months of inconvenience for the criminal to, by their assessment, “show remorse.”
The mission of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) remains clear: to rescue our country from this ruling party, the APC, to whom public opinion or accountability means nothing, and power and impunity mean everything.
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