Dr Josef Onoh has called on the President Bola Tinubu to reverse the recent pardons granted to some convicts, including Maryam Sanda and certain drug offenders.

DAILY POST recalls that Tinubu, last week, approved the recommendations of the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy, granting clemency to 175 individuals — among them drug convicts, foreigners, and capital offenders such as Maryam Sanda, who was sentenced to death in 2020 for the murder of her husband, Bilyaminu Bello, during a domestic dispute.

Reacting, Onoh described the decision as morally wrong and a rape of justice, stressing that it could damage the administration’s international image and undermine the country’s justice system.

He said that granting pardon to offenders such as Nweke Francis Chibueze, serving a life sentence for cocaine trafficking, and Isaac Justina, convicted for cannabis possession, represents a profound ethical and institutional rupture that demands immediate rectification.

“While constitutionally permissible, this act contravenes the moral imperatives of retributive justice and restorative equity. It inflicts psychological trauma on victims’ families, perpetuates systemic injustice, and erodes the deterrence mechanisms essential for societal stability,” Onoh stated.

According to him, pardoning Sanda, who caused irreversible loss to the Bello family through an act of lethal violence, undermines the value of human life and accountability.

The spokesman further said that extending clemency to convicted drug traffickers sends a dangerous signal to society.

“Absolving drug dealers like Chibueze, whose trafficking perpetuates cycles of addiction, community devastation, and organized crime, normalizes predation on society’s most fragile members — particularly the youth,” he said.

Onoh warned that such decisions could tarnish Nigeria’s image globally and erode the country’s credibility with international partners such as the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, UNODC.

Clemency: ‘Rape of justice’ – Tinubu asked to reverse pardon for Maryam Sanda, others