Tinubu Grants Clemency to 82 Inmates, Pardons Mamman Vatsa, Herbert Macaulay, Farouk Lawan
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved presidential pardons and clemency for several Nigerians, including posthumous pardons for nationalist Herbert Macaulay and former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Major General Mamman Jiya Vatsa, who was executed in 1986 over a treason charge.
The decision followed the endorsement of the National Council of State, which met in Abuja on Thursday, and the recommendations of the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy (PACPM).
According to a statement issued by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, a total of 175 individuals benefited from the exercise. President Tinubu granted clemency to 82 inmates, reduced the prison terms of 65 others, and commuted the death sentences of seven inmates to life imprisonment.
Among those pardoned were four former convicts — former lawmaker Farouk Lawan, Mrs. Anastasia Daniel Nwaobia, Barrister Hussaini Umar, and Ayinla Saadu Alanamu — who were said to have shown sufficient remorse and readiness to reintegrate into society. Others included Nweke Francis Chibueze, serving a life sentence for drug-related offences, and Dr. Nwogu Peters, who had served 12 of a 17-year term for fraud.
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President Tinubu also extended a posthumous pardon to Herbert Macaulay, a revered nationalist and co-founder, alongside Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, of the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC). Macaulay, once convicted by British colonial authorities in 1913 and barred from public service, was recognized for his pivotal role in Nigeria’s independence struggle.
In a historic gesture, the President formally pardoned the Ogoni Nine — Ken Saro-Wiwa, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo, Daniel Gbooko, Paul Levera, Felix Nuate, Baribor Bera, Barinem Kiobel, and John Kpuine — decades after their execution in 1995. He also awarded posthumous national honours to the Ogoni Four: Chief Albert Badey, Chief Edward Kobani, Chief Samuel Orage, and Theophilus Orage.
The PACPM, chaired by Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), comprises 12 members, including Chief Akinlolu Olujinmi, Prof. Alkasum Abba, Prof. (Mrs.) Nike Y. Sidikat Ijaiya, Justice Augustine B. Utsaha, and the Committee’s Secretary, Dr. Onwusoro Maduka. Institutional representatives from key government and faith-based bodies also participated in the review.
The committee’s report presented to the Council of State detailed that 294 applications were considered — including 175 inmates interviewed and 119 applications submitted on their behalf. Out of these, 82 inmates were recommended for clemency, 15 ex-convicts for presidential pardon (11 posthumously), and 65 for term reduction.
The recommendations were based on criteria such as old age, terminal illness, long-term imprisonment with good conduct, and evidence of remorse or rehabilitation through vocational training.
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, had inaugurated the PACPM on January 15, 2025, as part of efforts to promote justice, rehabilitation, and human rights within the Nigerian correctional system.
By PRNigeria
