‘It is president’s discretion’ — Malami defends state pardon for Dariye, Nyame

Abubakar Malami, attorney-general of the federation (AGF), says President Muhammadu Buhari was right to grant a state pardon to Joshua Dariye and Jolly Nyame, former governors of Plateau and Taraba states.

Dariye and Nyame were released from the correctional facility in Kuje council area, federal capital territory (FCT), on August 8, 2022.

The development comes almost four months after the former governors were granted state pardon.

During a council of state meeting presided over by President Buhari in April 2022, Dariye and Nyame were among 159 inmates pardoned.

The two former governors, jailed for fraud, were pardoned on the grounds of age and ill health.

Speaking at the 18th edition of the administration’s scorecard series on Thursday, Malami said it was within the constitutional powers of the president to grant state pardon.

He said Buhari only considered the eligibility of those pardoned and not the amount of money embezzled.

“There are no different set of laws but there could be variation in terms of volume of the certain matters involved and ingredients of the exercise of the situation,” he said.

“So, in essence, there has been in place a legislation that tolerated and accommodated pardon. It is the discretion of the president to exercise pardon.

“The question is whether the president has exercised the powers vested in him constitutionally or statutorily, and my answer is regardless of the volume of the money involved, the major consideration is the judicious exercise of the power by the president. 

“And my answer is Mr president has been exercising the powers statutorily vested in him as relates to pardon without having necessary regard to the volume involved.”