Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State has granted amnesty to 15 offenders currently serving prison terms at various prisons in the state.
Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in the state, Mr. Oluseun Abimbola made this disclosure in Ibadan, the state capital on Tuesday.
Abimbola while speaking added that 11 convicts will be released or get reduction in sentence terms, while four persons will have their death sentences commuted to life imprisonment.
He explained that the Governor, in exercise of his powers under section 212 of the 1999 constitution granted the amnesty on the recommendation of the State Advisory Council on the Prerogative of Mercy headed by the Attorney General, as part of the events commemorating the celebration of Nigeria’s 58th independence anniversary.
He appreciated the gesture of the governor in granting the amnesty, stating that it is the hope and expectation of the state government that those to be released would by reason of the good behaviour that qualified them for consideration for amnesty, reciprocate with continuing good behaviour as they reintegrate into the society.
He said, “We expect them to transform to become upstanding members of society, as they would have learnt useful lessons from their time of incarceration to know that crime does not pay.
“The exercise of the prerogative of mercy by the governor is a constitutional exercise carefully and responsibly reviewed to ensure the exercise retains its credibility”.
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