Tinubu’s clemency for drug offenders sparks outrage, raises questions about Nigeria’s anti-narcotics war

President Bola Tinubu’s decision to grant state pardon and clemency to about 50 convicted drug offenders has stirred widespread controversy, with critics warning that it sends mixed signals about Nigeria’s commitment to its anti-narcotics campaign.

The pardoned individuals, part of a broader list of 175 inmates approved for clemency by the Council of State last Thursday, were convicted of offences including drug trafficking, importation, and possession of illicit substances such as cocaine, heroin, cannabis, tramadol, and Indian hemp.

According to the presidency, the clemency followed recommendations by the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy, which cited remorse, good conduct, and acquisition of vocational skills by the beneficiaries.

Some were granted full pardons, while others, including notorious kidnappers and murderers, had their sentences commuted or reduced. The list also includes “illegal miners, white-collar convicts, remorseful drug offenders, foreigners…,” said presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga.

“President Tinubu granted clemency to most of them based on the reports that the convicts had shown remorse and good conduct. He forgave some due to old age, the acquisition of new vocational skills, or enrolment in the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN).”

A PREMIUM TIMES review shows that drug-related offenders made up about 29 per cent of the 175 convicts granted clemency.

Mixed signal for anti-drug agencies

Observers say the pardons may send conflicting signals to Nigeria’s anti-narcotics agencies, especially the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), which has in recent years ramped up its campaigns against drug trafficking and abuse.

In coordinated raids last week, the NDLEA intercepted 300,000 pills of Exol-5, ampoules of pentazocine, and capsules of tramadol in Niger and Kaduna states, according to its spokesperson, Femi Babafemi. 

Such operations suggest the agency is still pursuing a hard line against illicit substances even as some convicted offenders are being released under presidential clemency.

The agency’s chairman, Buba Marwa, has consistently said the NDLEA would pursue traffickers “without fear or favour.”

Also, PREMIUM TIMES reported the recent seizure of cocaine worth almost a trillion naira off the West African coast with global agencies calling on Nigeria to do more to check drug trafficking on its waters.

The clemency granted by the president has, however, raised concerns that such enforcement gains could be eroded if drug offenders are released prematurely.

The president’s power to grant clemency is constitutionally backed and has been used in past administrations.

Proponents argue it allows for mercy in cases of extreme age, terminal illness, exemplary behaviour while incarcerated, or systemic injustice in sentencing.

However, critics caution that the mass pardon of drug convicts risks appearing to soften the state’s posture towards narcotics.

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar said clemency to drug offenders undermines justice and emboldens criminality. “Extending clemency to individuals convicted of grave crimes such as drug trafficking, kidnapping, murder, and corruption not only diminishes the sanctity of justice but also sends a dangerous signal to the public and the international community about the values this government upholds,”

“At a time when Nigeria continues to reel under the weight of insecurity, moral decay, and a surge in drug-related offences, it is both shocking and indefensible that the presidency would prioritise clemency for those whose actions have directly undermined national stability and social order,” Mr Atiku wrote on X.

He said the move was particularly troubling given Nigeria’s struggle with rising drug use and the lingering reputational damage from past drug-related controversies linked to government officials.

“It is both shocking and indefensible that the presidency would prioritise clemency for those whose actions have directly undermined national stability and social order,” he said.

“Even more disturbing is the moral irony that this act of clemency is coming from a President whose own past remains clouded by unresolved and unexplained issues relating to the forfeiture of thousands of dollars to the United States government over drug-related investigations. It is, therefore, no surprise that this administration continues to demonstrate a worrying tolerance for individuals associated with criminal enterprise.”

Rising drug crisis

Nigeria has witnessed a surge in drug use and trafficking in the past decade. A 2018 NBS survey estimated that 14.4 per cent of Nigerians aged 15–64, about 14.3 million people, had used psychoactive substances, doubling the global average.

Substances such as cannabis, tramadol, codeine, methamphetamine, and cocaine dominate the market, with southern states seeing rising abuse among youth.

The NDLEA also said drug-linked crimes, including terrorism and kidnapping, have surged as traffickers use drug proceeds to fund violence.

The agency has since expanded its footprint to border communities, airports, and seaports, and intensified cooperation with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the US DEA.

Between 2021 and 2024, the NDLEA seized 9,959,340.9 kilograms of hard drugs, and 57,792 suspects were arrested during the same period. The agency also recorded 10,572 convictions within the period under review.

“Total summary of arrests, seizures, prosecution, and DDR from January 2021 to December 2024: Arrest, 57,792 including 65 drug barons; seizures, 9,959,340.9kg, convictions 10,572, counselled and rehab, 22,047, war against drug abuse in schools, etc, 9,239, number of participants 3,333, 678, cannabis farms destruction, 1,229.3,” NDLEA said in February.

In 2024 alone, the agency secured 3,427 convictions, counselled and rehabilitated 8,129 persons, provided 1,808,116 public enlightenment, and conducted 3,812 WADA lectures in schools. Additionally, 220 hectares of cannabis farms were destroyed.

The agency also intensified demand-reduction campaigns, drug education in schools, and community outreach under its “War Against Drug Abuse (WADA)” initiative, targeting youth and rural populations.

Critics said the presidential clemency, even though constitutionally backed, risks diluting the deterrent effect of NDLEA’s hard-won victories.

Expressing concerns about the presidential pardon, human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong described the move as one that will embolden criminality and weaken the country’s justice system.

Mr Effiong told PREMIUM TIMES that the president’s decision raised moral and legal questions about the message being sent to Nigerians and law enforcement agencies.

“My perception is that this pardon the President has issued is basically going to embolden criminality in the country,” he said.

READ ALSO: Nigeria customs intercepts N700 million illicit drugs in Katsina

The lawyer explained that under Section 175 of the Nigerian Constitution, the president has “an unlimited conditional power to exercise what is called the prerogative of mercy,” which he described as an act of clemency or pardon where the president “basically forgives and pardons those convicted or subjected to the criminal process”.

“When the president acts on the recommendation of the committee and issues a pardon or clemency, that pardon is absolute. What it implies in law is that it extinguishes and basically brings to an end the criminal history and record of the person that is pardoned.”

The lawyer also questioned the motive behind granting clemency to several convicts.

“I find it rather curious that the president, for reasons best known to him and the presidential committee, has decided to issue pardons to individuals who don’t think they merit it.”

In a statement on Monday, Amnesty International also expressed deep concern over Mr Tinubu’s decision to grant clemency and pardons to individuals convicted of serious human rights violations. “The pardons for these crimes prevent reparations for victims.”

The global watchdog urged the president to reconsider his government’s pardons for those convicted of human rights crimes and uphold and ensure the rights of the victims and their families.

“The way and manner Nigerian authorities carried out the exercise seemed to prioritise the perpetrators instead of access to justice and effective remedies for the victims and their families.

“The actions of the government have the potential of undermining the rule of law, preventing the emergence of the truth, the determination of guilt or innocence by a court, and reparations for victims, as well as entrenching impunity for human rights crimes,” the global rights group said.

While the NDLEA maintains that it will continue enforcement “without fear or favour,” critics warn that pardoning individuals convicted for serious drug offences risks weakening deterrence and potentially emboldening traffickers.

Some of the pardoned drug offenders are:

Aluagwu Lawrence, 47, was sentenced in 2015 for selling Indian hemp.

Ben Friday, 60, was jailed for three years or a N1.3 million fine in 2023 for marijuana possession.

Oroke Michael Chibueze, 21, sentenced to five years for cannabis sativa in 2023.

Kelvin Christopher Smith, 42, jailed for four years for importing cocaine in 2023.

Azubuike Jeremiah Emeka, 31, sentenced to five years or N3 million fine for cocaine import in 2021.

Akinrinnade Akinwande Adebiyi, 47, sentenced to three years for dealing in tramadol in 2023.

Ahmed Adeyemo, 38, serving 15 years for cannabis, had already spent nine years, five months at Kirikiri before being pardoned.

Adeniyi Jimoh, 31, and Seun Omirinde, 39, both jailed 15 years in 2015 for drug possession, also received clemency.

Safiyanu Umar, 56, sentenced without option of fine in 2023 for possessing 5kg of cannabis sativa.

Hamza Abubakar, 37, sentenced to five years in 2022 for selling Indian hemp.

Emmanuel Eze, 49, was jailed for five years in 2022 for heroin.

Bala Azika Yahaya, 70, sentenced to 15 years in 2017 for cannabis.

Muharazu Abubakar, 37, was jailed for five years for selling Indian hemp in 2022 after serving three years in Katsina.

Adam Abubakar, 30, and Emmanuel Yusuf, 34, both convicted in 2022 for possession of 2kg of tramadol.

Nsikat Edet Harry, 37, sentenced in 2023 to five years for possession of Indian hemp, cocaine, and heroin.

Jonathan Asuquo, 28, sentenced in 2022 to five years for possession of Indian hemp and other drugs.

Abiodun Elemero, 43, sentenced to life imprisonment in 2014 for cocaine hawking after spending 10 years at Kirikiri.

Other convicts saw their sentences reduced rather than cancelled.
They include:

Ifenna Kennechukwu, 42, jailed 20 years in 2015 for importing cocaine—now reduced to 12 years.

Patrick Mensah, 40, and Obi Edwin Chukwu, 43, had their drug-related sentences cut to 10 years.

Napolo Osariemen, 61, convicted in 2022 for 2kg of Indian hemp —now serving seven years instead of 15.

Helen Solomon, 68, Okoye Tochukwu, 43, and Ugwueze Paul, 38, each had cannabis-related sentences reduced from five to three years.

Chukwudi Destiny, 36, convicted for heroin import in 2022, saw his six-year term cut to four.