Babajide Kolade-Otitoju, a Nigerian journalist, has expressed concern about the Presidential Pardon granted to two former governors convicted for corruption. In a recent interview with TVC News, Babajide addressed the issue of granting forgiveness to criminals.
Discussing the development, Babajide said, “I do not think the propriety of this development with Nigerians who already think we are not doing enough to jail corrupt people who have led us to where we are. Nigerians now feel that we are fortunate to jail some of the corrupt people. Both governors were convicted by the same female judge. The governors are among the 2007 class, and they were convicted in 2018.
He continued, “We are releasing the few individuals we have managed to jail. We are forgiving of terrorists, criminals, and people who have committed heinous crimes against the state. That is not nation-building in my view. We have to send the right message to people who plan to steal that such theft will not be tolerated. It sends the message that corruption is fighting back, and we may be loosing the war. ”
A Presidential pardon was granted to former governors, Joshua Dariye and Jolly Nyame.
Click here to watch the interview. (1:00 minute)