Demand For DCP Abba
OpenLife Nigeria reports that a social media influencer, Ani Jonathan Ghaji, has tackled former Minister of Sports, Barrister Solomon Dalung on what he presents as Dalung’s ignorance of the law.
The tackle comes against the raging debates about the appropriateness of the presidential pardon and clemency extended to some individuals by President Bola Tinubu last week.
In the debates, many Nigerians are of the view that those who deserve the presidential pardon were not included. Among the voices is Barrister Solomon Dalung, former Minister of Sports.
In a statement, Dalung pointed at Deputy Commissioner Abba Kyari, a Police officer alleged to have been involved in drug deals whom he believes should be pardoned.
Dalung who signed the statement as the Comrade General, Movement for the Emancipation of Nigeria, Abuja and titled “ Demands The Discontinuation Of The Case Against DCP Abba Kyari And His Immediate Release,” wrote:
The Movement for the Emancipation of Nigeria (MEN) observes with deep concern the continued detention and prosecution of Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Abba Kyari despite recent presidential pardons extended to convicted drug traffickers, fraudsters, kidnappers, and bandits—many of whom were arrested by his team in the line of duty.
This selective application of clemency amounts to grave injustice and ridicule of the principle of fairness. If notorious criminals have been deemed worthy of pardon, it is morally indefensible to continue the persecution of an officer whose only crime was his patriotic zeal to combat the same menace now being rewarded by the state.
The recent wave of presidential amnesties and pardons has effectively emptied the moral and legal basis for Kyari’s continued detention. His prosecution under such circumstances represents a double standard that undermines the integrity of Nigeria’s justice system.
MEN views this as a clear case of institutional betrayal against a man who once risked his life in the service of national security and public order. Justice demands consistency, and equity demands that mercy must not be reserved for the guilty while punishment is sustained against the righteous.
In the spirit of fairness, national healing, and genuine reconciliation, MEN therefore calls on the President and the Attorney-General of the Federation to discontinue all charges against DCP Abba Kyari and secure his immediate release.
Anything short of this will amount to a travesty of justice and a dangerous precedent that discourages public officers from dedicating themselves to the fight against crime,” Barrister Dalung demanded.
Reacting, a social media influencer, Ani Jonathan Ghaji, punctured Barrister Dalung submission and gave what appears a lectures on the state of the law on presidential pardon and clemency.
The power of the government to grant pardon, also known as the prerogative of mercy, is constitutionally reserved for persons who have been tried and convicted by a competent court of law. It is an act of clemency extended to convicted criminals, allowing for a remission of punishment, reduction of sentence, or total forgiveness after due judicial process has been concluded.
A suspect whose case is still pending in court has not yet been found guilty or convicted. Extending a pardon to such a person would interfere with the judicial process, undermine the independence of the judiciary, and amount to a prejudgment of the case.
The principle of separation of powers forbids the executive from exercising mercy over a matter that the court has not yet determined.
Therefore, until a final conviction and sentence are entered, the prerogative of mercy cannot lawfully apply to a suspect still standing trial,” Ani Jonathan Ghaji lectured.
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