The Council of State on Thursday approved the use of the presidential prerogative of mercy for 175 individuals across different categories.
The approval came after a presentation by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), who delivered President Bola Tinubu’s recommendations based on the report of the Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy.
The presentation took place during the Council’s meeting held at the State House in Abuja.
Although the full list of beneficiaries has not yet been made public, it was gathered that Herbert Macaulay, one of Nigeria’s founding fathers, and Maj.-Gen. Mamman Vatsa (retd.), a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory under the Babangida regime, were among those pardoned.
Members of the Ogoni Nine and Ogoni Four were also included.
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A source at the meeting confirmed, “Herbert Macaulay and Vatsa are among the two most notable names on the list.”
Macaulay, widely regarded as the father of Nigerian nationalism, was twice convicted by colonial authorities in Lagos.
In 1913, while working as a surveyor, he was accused of misappropriating funds from an estate he managed and sentenced to prison—a case whose fairness historians have long questioned.
Later, in 1928, after his newspaper, the Lagos Daily News, published articles supporting the Eleko of Lagos during a political crisis, he was convicted of sedition in the famous “Gunpowder Plot” case and sentenced to six months in prison with hard labour.
Vatsa, a poet, former FCT Minister, and member of the Supreme Military Council, was executed on March 5, 1986, following a secret tribunal trial that found him guilty of plotting a coup against then military ruler General Ibrahim Babangida, his longtime friend.
His execution has remained a subject of controversy, with repeated calls over the years for a posthumous pardon.
Of the 175 beneficiaries, 82 inmates received a full presidential pardon, 65 had their sentences reduced, and seven death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment.
Briefing journalists after the meeting, Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State explained, “Eighty-two inmates were granted full pardon, 65 had their sentences reduced, while seven death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment. This reflects the President’s dedication to justice and correctional reform.”
The meeting, chaired by President Tinubu, also ratified key federal appointments, including Dr. Aminu Yusuf from Niger State as Chairman of the National Population Commission, and Tonge Bularafa as Federal Commissioner representing Yobe State on the same commission.
Both nominations were unanimously approved by the Council.
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