Nigeria’s Council of State on Thursday approved the exercise of the presidential prerogative of mercy for 175 individuals, including historical figures and former government officials.
The decision followed a presentation by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, who conveyed President Bola Tinubu’s recommendations based on the report of the Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy during the Council’s meeting at the State House, Abuja.
Sources familiar with the matter said the pardon includes Herbert Macaulay, widely recognised as the “father of Nigerian nationalism,” and retired Major-General Mamman Vatsa, a former Federal Capital Territory minister under the Babangida regime. Members of the Ogoni Nine and Ogoni Four are also reported to have benefited.
Macaulay had been convicted by colonial authorities in 1913 and 1928 for alleged misappropriation and sedition, while Vatsa was executed by firing squad in 1986 following a military tribunal over an alleged coup attempt against then-military ruler Ibrahim Babangida. Calls for Vatsa’s posthumous pardon have persisted for decades.
Of the 175 beneficiaries, 82 inmates received full presidential pardons, 65 had their sentences reduced, and seven death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment.
Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani, who spoke to journalists after the meeting, described the decision as a demonstration of the President’s commitment to justice and correctional reform.