There are strong, albeit unconfirmed reports circulating within and around the premises of the National Assembly, that President Bola Tinubu may use the occasion of the Democracy Day celebration on Thursday June 12 June, to grant presidential pardons to some ex-convicts who were once political heavyweights.
Two names mentioned thus far are former Delta State Governor, Chief James Onanefe Ibori, and former Member of the House of Representatives, Farouk Lawan (Shanono Federal Constituency, Kano State).
The announcement of such pardons is speculated to be one of the major highlights of President Tinubu’s address to the joint sitting of the National Assembly scheduled for tomorrow.
The President’s choice of the Legislature as the platform for delivering his Democracy Day address aligns with his recognition of the Legislature’s place as a key constitutional organ in the tripartite division of powers. The Legislature, among the three arms of government, is the bulwark of constitutional democracy. Without it, democratic governance collapses, making way for other forms of rule.
Another confirmed highlight of President Tinubu’s address is the conferment of national honours on a select group of federal lawmakers.
The commemorative event, a special joint sitting is slated to hold at the more spacious House of Representatives Chamber. Proceedings will commence at 11:00 a.m., with President Tinubu expected to arrive at 12:00 noon to deliver his presidential address as the Special Guest of Honour.
Chairman of the House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Hon. Akin Rotimi, confirmed the development in a statement last Sunday.
The announcement of presidential pardons for politically exposed ex-convicts may either feature in the President’s speech at the joint sitting or be delivered in his nationwide broadcast. There is also the possibility that it may be issued through a statement by the Presidency.
Ibori remains a prominent leader in the Niger Delta region and a nationally recognised political figure.
New National Star recalls that in 2012, Ibori was sentenced to 13 years in prison for money laundering in the United Kingdom. He was released in December 2016 after serving four years of his sentence, following a court order. Upon release, he was deported to Nigeria, where he retained significant political influence.
In 2021, a British court ordered Ibori to pay approximately £100 million, to be returned to the Nigerian government.
Ibori has been openly supportive of President Tinubu’s administration. However, New National Star could not confirm the exact point at which he shifted allegiance from his long-time associate, Atiku Abubakar, for whom he had staunchly campaigned in 2003.
Back then, Ibori led a bloc of 22 PDP governors in backing Atiku Abubakar against then-incumbent President Olusegun Obasanjo in the PDP’s presidential primaries. For this, Ibori was said to have been “punished”, with a legal challenge filed against him in 2003 on the grounds that, as an ex-convict, he was ineligible to have contested for Governor of Delta State.
His lawyer, Chief Rotimi Williams (SAN), of blessed memory, had argued before the Supreme Court that he [Ibori] was not the same James Onanefe Ibori convicted by the Bwari Magistrates’ Court in 1995.
Ibori and Tinubu both belonged to the class of state governors who served between 1999 and 2007. Ibori was reportedly among the first high-profile visitors to Tinubu after his inauguration as President.
He also played a key role in the political manoeuvring that led to Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, his deputy, and former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, a former PDP vice-presidential candidate crossing over to the APC.
As for Hon. Farouk Lawan, he was once a prominent lawmaker from Kano State, having served three terms representing Shanono Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives. He was also leader of the “Integrity Group”, until he failed that same test by accepting a $500,000 bribe from billionaire Femi Otedola during a House Committee investigation into the fuel subsidy scandal in 2012.
Lawan was convicted and sentenced to seven years in prison on 22 June 2021. He completed his sentence on 22 October 2024 and has since become active in the current political landscape.
He was recently spotted at the formal defection ceremony of Delta State’s political leaders — including a sitting governor, a former governor, and the PDP’s former vice-presidential candidate — to the APC.
In addition, Lawan was part of the Kano State delegation present at the decamping of several NNPP members of the House of Representatives.
A presidential pardon for Ibori, Lawan, and other politically significant ex-convicts would help remove a key constitutional impediment to their full re-engagement in Nigerian politics and governance.