President Bola Tinubu has bowed to public pressure and reversed the earlier presidential pardon granted to Maryam Sanda, who was sentenced to death in 2020 for killing her husband, Bilyaminu Bello.
According to an official gazette released by the Ministry of Justice, Sanda’s death sentence has been commuted to 12 years’ imprisonment following widespread backlash from Bello’s family and concerned members of the public.
Having already spent six years and eight months at the Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre, Sanda, who was sentenced to death by hanging in January 2020, will now serve an additional six years before completing her new sentence.
The gazette noted that the revised term was approved on compassionate grounds.
Sanda will “serve 12 years based on compassionate grounds, in the best interest of the Children and good conduct, embraced a new lifestyle, model prisoner and remorsefulness,” the gazette said.
The convict’s name was included in a long list of persons granted reduced terms of imprisoment and sentence pursuant to section 175 of
the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, indicated that the action followed discussions with the Council of State and consideration of broad public sentiment on the issue.
The reassessment resulted in the removal of individuals convicted of grave offenses including kidnapping, drug-related crimes, human trafficking, fraud, and illegal possession or trafficking of firearms.
Additionally, some individuals who had been scheduled for complete pardons had their sentences either reduced or converted to lighter punishments.
“The decision was guided by the seriousness and security implications of some of the offences, the need to respect the rights and feelings of victims, boost the morale of law enforcement agencies, and uphold Nigeria’s bilateral obligations,” the statement said.
The statement further explained that the concept of justice as a “three-way traffic” — balancing the rights of the accused, the victim, and society — also informed the President’s careful approach.
