Primate Ayodele Sends Strong Message to Tinubu as President Pardons Drug Offenders, Fraudsters

Primate Ayodele Sends Strong Message to Tinubu as President Pardons Drug Offenders, Fraudsters

  • Prominent Nigerians have condemned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s recent decision to grant pardons to dozens of convicted criminals
  • Legit.ng reports that the pardoned individuals include drug traffickers, scammers, and illegal miners
  • Primate Elijah Babatunde Ayodele described the move as a grave setback to Nigeria’s anti-drug campaign and a dangerous affront to justice and morality

Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering public affairs and governance in Nigeria.

Oke Afa, Lagos state - Primate Elijah Ayodele, leader of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Lagos, has condemned President Bola Tinubu over his recent decision to pardon some convicted criminals.

Legit.ng recalls that dozens of convicts and ex-convicts were granted pardon by President Tinubu on Thursday, October 9, following the approval of the national council of state.

Primate Elijah Ayodele sends strong message to Bola Tinubu as president pardons drug offenders, fraudsters, and illegal miners
Primate Elijah Ayodele says President Bola Tinubu wasted the efforts of the NDLEA and other security operatives with pardons. Photo credits: Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Primate Babatunde Elijah Ayodele
Source: Facebook

Among the 175 beneficiaries are Herbert Macaulay, one of Nigeria’s foremost nationalists; Farouk Lawan, a former member of the house of representatives; and Mamman Vatsa, a major general and poet executed in 1986 over alleged treason.

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Drug offenders, illegal miners, white-collar convicts, and foreigners are also among recipients of the presidential pardon.

In a statement on Saturday, October 11, presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, said Tinubu granted clemency to most of the convicts based on reports that they had shown remorse and good conduct.

Tinubu’s pardons trigger displeasure

But in a statement signed by his media aide, Osho Oluwatosin, sent to Legit.ng on Tuesday, October 14, Primate Ayodele described the action as wasting the efforts of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and security operatives that arrested and convicted the criminals.

The cleric stated that the convicts will continue to cause issues in the country and add to the troubles of security operatives despite the current situation of insecurity in the country.

Ayodele said:

“Why must he pardon criminals, hard drug pushers? It is just like wasting the efforts of these security operatives to arrest these criminals. These criminals will continue to cause issues in society; you cannot separate them from crime.”

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Primate Elijah Ayodele speaks on Bola Tinubu's presidential pardon.
Primate Elijah Ayodele blasts President Bola Tinubu. Photo credit: Primate Elijah Babatunde Ayodele
Source: Facebook

Ayodele chides Tinubu on Nnamdi Kanu

Furthermore, Primate Ayodele made it known that since it was easy for the president to pardon the criminals, it is unfair to allow Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) to still be behind bars without sentencing for several years. He held that since convicted and imprisoned criminals can be easily pardoned, Kanu’s case should be easier to pardon.

He said:

“Now, since he released these people, why then is Nnamdi Kanu in detention for several years? If these people can be pardoned despite some of their crimes, Nnamdi Kanu should be pardoned too."

Read more Primate Elijah Ayodele's prophecies:

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"I only have moral objection": Lawyer speaks on Tinubu's pardon list

'50kg rice price to drop to N30K' - Ayodele

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Primate Ayodele forecasted the naira performance against the US dollar.

Speaking in a video posted on his church's official Facebook page, Ayodele projected that the price of 50kg bag of rice will significantly decline.

In his prophecy, the cleric mentioned potential economic milestones in Nigeria, such as the dollar exchange rate reaching N900, rice prices hitting N30,000 per bag, and petrol prices reaching N500.

Proofreading by James Ojo, copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng

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Ridwan Adeola Yusuf (Current Affairs Editor) Ridwan Adeola Yusuf is a content creator with more than nine years of experience, He is also a Current Affairs Editor at Legit.ng. He holds a Higher National Diploma in Mass Communication from the Polytechnic Ibadan, Oyo State (2014). Ridwan previously worked at Africa Check, contributing to fact-checking research works within the organisation. He is an active member of the Academic Excellence Initiative (AEI). In March 2024, Ridwan completed the full Google News Initiative Lab workshop and his effort was recognised with a Certificate of Completion. Email: ridwan.adeola@corp.legit.ng.