EKO HOT BLOG reports that the former Governor of Plateau State, Senator Joshua Dariye, and a former Taraba State Governor, Jolly Nyame, and two others have been released by the authorities of the Nigerian Correctional Service.
Recall that the Council of State, led by President Muhammadu Buhari had on April 14 approved the pardon of the convicts, a decision which generated outcries.
The duo were serving a jail term for corruption allegations until they were granted a pardon by President Buhari, a development that received a lot of negative reactions.
The two former governors, who are members of the All Progressives Congress, were convicted by Justice Adebukola Banjoko of the Abuja High Court in 2018.
Dariye, who was Plateau Governor from 1999 to 2007, was sentenced to 14 years in prison. But his term was eventually reduced to 10 years by the Court of Appeal in Abuja, while his conviction was affirmed by the Supreme Court.
For Rev Nyame, who was Taraba Governor from 1999 to 2007, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison for stealing N1.6bn from the state’s treasury. The judgment was also upheld by the Supreme Court.
The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, who addressed journalists after the Council of State meeting, noted that the council approved 159 out of 162 applications presented for consideration for the prerogative of mercy for convicts and inmates in correctional facilities nationwide.
When contacted, the FCT Spokesperson for the Nigerian Correctional Service, Chukwuedo Humphrey, confirmed their release to our correspondent in a telephone interview.
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