By Naija247news Staff Reporter | October 15, 2025
International human rights organisation, Amnesty International Nigeria, has strongly criticised the recent presidential pardon granted by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to 175 convicted individuals, including persons accused or convicted of human rights abuses, warning that the move undermines justice and denies victims the right to reparations.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by its Country Director, Isa Sanusi, Amnesty International expressed “deep concern” over the manner in which the clemency exercise was conducted, arguing that it appeared to “prioritise perpetrators instead of victims.”
“We are deeply concerned by the clemency and pardons granted by the government of President Bola Tinubu to some persons convicted of human rights crimes,” Sanusi said.
“The pardons for these crimes prevent reparations for victims. The way and manner Nigerian authorities carried out the exercise seemed to prioritise the perpetrators instead of access to justice and effective remedies for the victims and their families.”
President Tinubu had, on Friday, October 10, 2025, granted clemency to 175 individuals, among them Herbert Macaulay, Ken Saro-Wiwa, and Major-General Mamman Vatsa (retd.), a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory under the Babangida regime.
However, the amnesty list has drawn widespread controversy after it emerged that convicted drug offenders and Maryam Sanda, who was sentenced to death in 2020 for killing her husband, Bilyaminu Bello, were also included.
Amnesty International warned that such blanket pardons for individuals convicted of grave crimes could “undermine the rule of law” and “entrench a culture of impunity” in Nigeria’s justice system.
“The actions of the government have the potential of undermining the rule of law, preventing the emergence of truth, the determination of guilt or innocence by a court, and reparations for victims,” Sanusi said.
“President Bola Tinubu should reconsider his government’s pardons for those convicted of human rights crimes and uphold and ensure the rights of the victims and their families.”
Human rights advocates have also questioned the timing and transparency of the clemency exercise, noting that it risks sending the wrong message about accountability in a country struggling with widespread insecurity, extrajudicial killings, and systemic rights violations.
Amnesty International urged the Tinubu administration to review the list and exclude individuals convicted of human rights abuses or violent crimes, insisting that justice must balance compassion with responsibility.
The presidential pardon, which the government described as part of efforts to decongest prisons and promote reconciliation, has instead ignited a fierce national debate over the boundaries of mercy and the sanctity of justice.
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Reporting by Naija247news in Lagos, Nigeria.
