President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved a series of landmark pardons, including posthumous clemency for nationalist Herbert Macaulay and the late Major General Mamman Jiya Vatsa, following the endorsement of the National Council of State in Abuja.

Also pardoned were former lawmaker Farouk Lawan, Mrs Anastasia Daniel Nwaobia, Barrister Hussaini Umar, and Ayinla Saadu Alanamu, who were said to have shown remorse and readiness for reintegration.

The President granted clemency to 82 inmates, reduced the prison terms of 65 others, and commuted seven death sentences to life imprisonment. The Ogoni Nine, led by Ken Saro-Wiwa, were formally pardoned, while national honours were awarded to the Ogoni Four.

These actions were based on recommendations from the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy, chaired by the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, as part of President Tinubu’s commitment to justice, rehabilitation, and human rights.