30th December, 2019
Gov. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State has pardoned 16 inmates of the Nigerian Correctional Centre in Akure.
Olusegun Ajiboye, Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, said in a statement in Akure on Monday that Akeredolu exercised the powers conferred on him in paragraph (d) of sub-section (1) Section 212 of the Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
“Governor Akeredolu, in a letter addressed to the Controller of Nigerian Correctional Service, State Headquarters, Federal Secretariat Complex, Akure, orders that 16 of the inmates be discharged out of the custodian centre accordingly and forthwith,” he said.
According to the governor, the affected inmates who have been duly convicted of various terms of imprisonment have served portions of the said sentences.
“Following a recommendation made to the governor by the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy, Governor Akeredolu consequently exercises the power in relation to the said inmates to mark the 2020 New Year Celebrations.
“The 16 inmates were also confirmed to have been of good conduct before they were ordered to be released by the Governor.
“In the same vein, the Governor also exercises the power conferred on him by paragraphs (a)(c) and (d) of Sub-section (1) of Section 212 of the Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) extends Grace and Mercy to three condemned inmates.
“The governor commutes the life imprisonment of the three condemned inmates who have been awaiting execution, to numbers of years,” he said.