President Bola Tinubu has approved the presidential pardon of Nigerian nationalist, Herbert Macaulay, late Major-General, Mamman Vatsa, and former lawmaker, Farouk Lawan, alongside 14 others, following the endorsement of the National Council of State.
Naijaonpoint reports that the decision was announced in Abuja on Thursday by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, who said the move was aimed at decongesting prisons and advancing restorative justice.
Macaulay, widely regarded as the father of Nigerian nationalism, was posthumously pardoned decades after his 1913 conviction by colonial authorities, which barred him from public office. He died in 1946, but the stain of the sentence had remained on record.
Similarly, Vatsa, a poet and member of the Supreme Military Council executed in 1986 under General Ibrahim Babangida for alleged coup plotting, was pardoned nearly four decades after his controversial death.
The President also pardoned Farouk Lawan, a former House of Representatives member jailed for bribery, as well as Anastasia Daniel Nwaobia, Hussaini Umar, and Ayinla Saadu Alanamu, who were described as having shown “sufficient remorse” and readiness to reintegrate into society.
In addition, Nweke Francis Chibueze, serving a life term for cocaine trafficking, and Nwogu Peters, who had spent 12 years of a 17-year fraud sentence, were freed under the clemency.
Overall, the Council approved presidential mercy for 82 inmates, reduced the sentences of 65 others, and commuted seven death sentences to life imprisonment.
Ogoni Nine And Ogoni Four Honoured
In a symbolic gesture, Tinubu granted formal pardons to the Ogoni Nine, led by environmental activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, who were executed in 1995 under General Sani Abacha’s regime.
Posthumous national honours were also awarded to the Ogoni Four, Albert Badey, Edward Kobani, Samuel Orage, and Theophilus Orage, recognised for their activism in the Niger Delta struggle.
The clemency followed the report of the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy (PACPM), chaired by the Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN).
Other members included Akinlolu Olujinmi, Alkasum Abba, Nike Sidikat Ijaiya, Augustine Utsaha, and Onwusoro Maduka (secretary), alongside representatives of the police, correctional service, National Human Rights Commission, NSCIA, and CAN.
The committee, inaugurated by SGF George Akume in January 2025, reviewed 294 applications and interviewed 175 inmates. Its recommendations were guided by criteria such as old age, terminal illness, long sentences, good conduct, and rehabilitation.
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