By Dr. Nafisat Makinde
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has granted pardons to 17 individuals, including posthumous exonerations for nationalist Herbert Macaulay and Major General Mamman Jiya Vatsa, and extended clemency to 82 inmates across Nigeria. The announcements followed the National Council of State meeting in Abuja on Thursday, October 9.
Vatsa, executed in 1986 for treason, and Macaulay, unjustly convicted by colonial authorities in 1913, have now been formally cleared. The Ogoni Nine, including Ken Saro-Wiwa, also received posthumous pardons, while the Ogoni Four were awarded national honours. According to a State House press release by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy), the President described the exercise as a step to correct historical injustices and honour national figures.
Four former convicts, including ex-House member Farouk Lawan, were pardoned to aid reintegration into society. Seven inmates on death row had sentences commuted to life imprisonment, and 65 others had their prison terms reduced.
The Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy (PACPM), chaired by Attorney General Prince Lateef Fagbemi, reviewed 294 applications and interviewed 175 inmates. “Our recommendations focused on age, health, length of service, vocational rehabilitation, and demonstrated remorse,” Fagbemi said.
Senator George Akume, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, inaugurated the PACPM in January 2025 to promote justice, rehabilitation, and human rights. The President’s exercise of mercy reinforces Nigeria’s commitment to correcting past injustices while supporting rehabilitation for deserving convicts.
