Governor grants amnesty to 4 death-row inmates

Gov. Rauf Aregbesola of Osun on Wednesday granted amnesty to four death-row prison inmates in three South West prisons.

The Director of Public Prosecutions and Secretary to the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy, Mr Pomade Adeniji, announced the amnesty in a statement in Osogbo.

The statement said the governor’s gesture was in commemoration of the New Year celebrations.

“Pursuant to the advice and recommendations of the State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy, Gov. Rauf Aregbesola, in exercise of his powers, has granted amnesty to the prison inmates,’’ the statement said.

It said the inmates were serving their jail terms at federal prisons in Ilesha, Ibara and Abeokuta as well as the Maximum Security Prison, Kirikiri in Lagos.

It also listed the inmates as Kolawole Adediji and Madelon Adediji, both on the death row and now set free.

The statement also said that Ekanade Muyiwa and Adewole Olusoji, who were also on the death row, had their sentences commuted from death to 20 years of imprisonment each.

“This is in commemoration of the New Year 2017 celebrations,” the statement read.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the governor did a similar gesture last September by pardoning six inmates.

The governor was then reported to have granted the amnesty in commemoration of the country’s 56th Independence anniversary.