Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State

NIGERIA: GOVERNOR UGWUANYI FREES 2 PRISONERS, COMMUTES FIVE DEATH SENTENCES

December 2, 2016: Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State granted unconditional pardon to two inmates of the Enugu Prison.
The Governor also commuted death sentence of five other inmates to ‎life imprisonment.
This is the first time a governor of Enugu State exercised such constitutional powers since Nigeria’s return to democracy in 1999.
Speaking at the Enugu State Headquarters of the Nigeria Prisons, Governor Ugwuanyi, assured that the exercise would be carried out regularly.
The Governor, represented by the State’s Attorney General and commissioner ‎for justice, Hon. Miletus Eze said Ugwuanyi had within one year in office done who his predecessors never did.
“The Governor of Enugu State has performed his statutory constitutional duty by granting amnesty to some inmates of the Enugu Prisons.
“As you heard from the Enugu Prisons Comptroller General, since 1999, this exercise has not been carried out in Enugu State but because of the nature of the governor we have, he has decided to carry out this function.
“Two persons were granted unconditional pardon, then five persons had their death sentences commuted to life imprisonment”, he stated.
Asked whether the exercise would henceforth be carried out regularly, Eze, who is also the chairman of the Enugu State’s Advisory Council of Prerogative of Mercy noted that, “it is a discretionary power of the Governor.
“If you recommend daily to him, he has the discretion to decide whether to exercise it or not, but I ‎can assure you that with the type of disposition he has, it will be done from time to time.”
Earlier, the Enugu Prisons Comptroller, Mr. Ifeanyi Isaiah Amalili, who received the Governor’s letter from the Attorney General described it as historical.
While stressing that Ugwuanyi had done a noble thing, he added that, “this is going to be a big relief to the inmates that were affected.
“We extend our gratitude to the Governor because since 1999 this is the first time we are witnessing this. Other States Governors have been coming here to free some of the inmates but Enugu has never done it. It is a major milestone.
“I appeal that this effort should be more regular. I believe that the journey has started, by January next year, I pray that others will get this benefit.”
Meanwhile, Amalili hinted that the Enugu Prisons with a capacity of 648 inmates now house 1939 inmates, representing over 300 percent increase. (Sources: dailypost.ng, 02/12/2016)