A senior advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has asked President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to forgive all prisoners who have been jailed for stealing and related offenses.
The request followed the state pardon granted by the Council of States on Thursday to former Governor of Taraba State, Jolly Nyame.
Nyame was jailed for corruption after the expiration of his tenure as the governor of the state between 1999 and 2007.
Falana stated this while speaking as the guest lecturer at an event organized to celebrate one year of remembrance of the late Yinka Odumakin and the launching of the Yinka Odumakin Foundation, held at Sheraton Lagos Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos State.
He said: “They are pardoning themselves right now. The same man who said he came to fight corruption has been granting pardons to people who were convicted of stealing billions of naira.
“My reaction is that all thieves and other criminals in our prisons should be released.
“Under section 17 of their constitution, it says there shall be equal rights for all citizens and section 42 says there shall be no discrimination based on class, gender, whatever. So you cannot take out two people and leave the rest there.
“In particular, the Government has been prohibited from conferring advantages on any group of citizens to the exclusion of others in the same category.
“If the government doesn’t release others, I am going to suggest to lawyers whose clients are likely to be left in prison to go to court and challenge the discriminatory treatment meted out to them, as what is good for the goose is good for the gander
“If you want to pardon your friends, you must also extend the presidential pardon to all thieves, because if the big thieves are being asked to walk away, we must also extend it to others including the petty thieves jailed for stealing spaghetti and noodles to feed themselves.”
