The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has teamed up with civil rights coalitions to seek an amendment of Nigeria’s Prerogative of Mercy Act, arguing that the existing framework enables executive impunity.
At a joint press conference in Abuja, ADC Chairman Ralph Okey Nwosu and representatives from the Rule of Law Advocates Forum (RoLAF) and Human Rights Awareness Initiative (HRAI) said the current law gives the President “unrestrained latitude” to grant pardons without clear criteria or judicial checks.
“The recent clemency list has exposed the gaps in our law. The spirit of mercy must serve justice, not undermine it,” Nwosu stated.
The coalition proposes a three-tier screening process involving the Judiciary, Civil Society Representatives, and the Ministry of Justice, with mandatory publication of pardon criteria and beneficiaries in the official gazette.
A draft bill is expected to reach the House of Representatives by November, sponsored by ADC lawmaker Leke Olufemi (Federal Constituency Oyo).
GOVERNANCE MEETS MORAL ACCOUNTABILITY
Nigeria’s mercy framework dates back to 1979 and has been amended only once since 1999. Past committees have urged clearer eligibility benchmarks to avoid recurrence of controversial pardons granted under Obasanjo (2002), Jonathan (2013), and now Tinubu (2025).
Legal experts say the ADC’s proposal could set a precedent for institutional transparency if backed by the National Assembly.
ACCOUNTABILITY BOX
🔹 Draft Bill for Presidential Mercy Review — First reading target: Nov 2025.
🔹 Coalition members: 18 civil organisations, 3 faith-based networks.
🔹 Public petition signatures surpass 120,000 in five days.
🔹 Proposed requirement: Judicial panel vetting before presidential assent.
MORAL FIRESTORM
The debate has shifted from individual pardon outrage to institutional reform. This movement frames mercy not as a gesture of power but as a duty bounded by law. The ADC coalition positions itself as a moral counter-weight to executive absolutism, creating a new pressure zone for legislative transparency.
THE CURRENCY OF TRUST
Governance credibility operates like a market index. Each policy action moves public confidence points up or down. By leading a publicly visible campaign on mercy law reform, the ADC and its partners are earning moral capital that translates into political dividends. For donors and advocacy groups, transparency is a funding magnet; for the ruling party, silence is a reputational cost.
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