After backlash for granting a presidential pardon to Maryam Sanda, sentenced to death in 2020 for the killing of her husband, Bilyaminu Bello, President Bola Tinubu has revoked the pardon and reversed her sentence to 12 years.

This was revealed in an official gazette released by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Wednesday.

According to the gazette, Sanda, who had already spent six years and eight months at the Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre, will now spend approximately six additional years in jail after getting an approved term on compassionate grounds.

It read, “Maryam Sanda, whose offence was culpable homicide, sentenced on 27/01/2020 with death by hanging, has served six years and eight months at the Medium Security Custodial Centre (MSCC), Suleja will now serve 12 years based on compassionate grounds, in the best interest of the children and good conduct, embraced a new lifestyle, model prisoner and remorsefulness.”

In the gazette titled “reduced terms”, the explanatory note stressed that the beneficiaries whose names were listed therein were in pursuance of section 175 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).

The beneficiaries included 37-year-old Sanda, Harunah Isah (35), Mamman Ibrahim (50), Sanusi Adamu (28), Sadi Musa 20, Sabiyu Aliyu, Halliru Sani (18), and 79 others.

Corroborating the gazette in a press statement, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) said the presidential pardon earlier released that granted Sanda and others clemency has been reviewed following consultations with the Council of State.

Fagbemi added that the President received concerns on the recommended list and consequently initiated a due process review.

The statement partly read, “It is to be recalled that following consultations with the Council of State, the President received concerns on the recommended list and consequently initiated a due process review. This exercise has been completed and approved by the President. This exercise was to ensure that only persons who met stipulated legal and procedural requirements would benefit from the prerogative of mercy.

“During this final review, few persons earlier recommended were found not to have met the necessary requirements and were accordingly delisted, while in some other cases, sentences were reviewed and reduced to reflect fairness, justice, and the spirit of the exercise.

“This exercise underscores the President’s desire to balance justice with compassion and the belief that justice must not only punish, but also reform and redeem. The review was undertaken with meticulous commitment to due process to reinforce the administration’s broader commitment to justice reform and humane correctional practices in line with international standards.”

The Minister of Justice further said that President Tinubu has directed the immediate relocation of the Secretariat of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Prerogative of Mercy from the Federal Ministry of Special Duties to the Federal Ministry of Justice.

“To ensure that future exercises meet public expectations and best practices, the President has directed the immediate relocation of the Secretariat of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Prerogative of Mercy from the Federal Ministry of Special Duties to the Federal Ministry of Justice.

“The President has further directed the Attorney-General of the Federation to issue appropriate Guidelines for the Exercise of the Power of Prerogative of Mercy, which includes compulsory consultation with relevant prosecuting agencies.

“This will ensure that only persons who fully meet the stipulated legal and procedural requirements will henceforth benefit from the issuance of instruments of release,” the statement added.

The PUNCH reports that Tinubu granted Sanda a pardon because her family pleaded for her release, arguing that it was in the best interest of her two children.

The pardon was part of a larger decision to grant clemency to 175 Nigerians and foreigners, including notable figures such as the late environmental activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, Major General Mamman Vatsa, and other members of the “Ogoni Nine”.

However, the pardon was greeted by a backlash from opposition parties and political figures, including the African Democratic Congress and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who condemned Tinubu’s decision to grant presidential pardons to dozens of convicted criminals, including drug traffickers, describing the move as a grave setback to Nigeria’s anti-drug campaign and a dangerous affront to justice and morality.

Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, explained on Tuesday that he shunned an invitation by the US embassy for a visa re-interview in September because he was not comfortable with the September 11 date fixed for the exercise.

September 11 became a symbolic date in the US after the September 11, 2001, devastating terror attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre in New York City and other locations.

Soyinka, who described himself as superstitious, said he found it odd that the embassy would choose September 11 for his visa re-interview.

The world-acclaimed writer gave the explanation during a media parley, titled “Unending Saga: Idi Amin in Whiteface” which was held at Kongi’s Harvest Gallery, Freedom Park, Lagos Island.

At the gathering, Soyinka disclosed that the US embassy had revoked his visa, saying the media parley was necessary to let those expecting him in the US to know that he had been “banned”.

Soyinka, who is a vocal critic of the US President Donald Trump, said he got the notice of his visa revocation in a letter dated October 23, 2025, and wondered what could have led to it.

In the letter, the US Consulate stated that the Nobel laureate’s non-immigrant visa “has been revoked pursuant to the authority contained in the U.S. Department of State regulations 22 CFR 41.122 and is no longer valid for application for entry into the United States. Additional information became available after the visa below was issued. This revocation refers only to the visa listed below.”

The Consulate further requested Soyinka to bring his visa to the Lagos embassy “for physical cancellation,” a request the Nobel laureate described as humorous, asking if anyone in the audience would volunteer to deliver it to the embassy on his behalf.

“If you have plans to travel to the United States, you must apply again to re-establish your qualifications for a new non-immigrant visa,” the letter, issued by the NIV Section of the Consulate, added.

Soyinka’s B1/B2 visa was issued on April 2, 2024, in Lagos, according to the letter.

Soyinka said the media parley was necessary so that people expecting him in the US would know that he had been “banned”.

“It is necessary for me to hold this press conference so that people in the United States who are expecting me for this event or that event do not waste their time. I have no visa; I am banned, obviously, from the United States. And if you want to see me, you know where to find me,” the 91-year-old author, playwright, and poet told journalists at the upper chamber of the art gallery.

Soyinka expressed surprise over the development, saying, “I’ve started looking back—have I ever misbehaved toward the United States of America? Do I have a history? Have I been convicted? Have I gone against the law anywhere?”

He, however, noted that the development would not affect his relationship with US citizens.

“I assured them that both he and his staff are given permanent visas anytime they want to visit the Autonomous Republic of Ijegba, situated in Abeokuta. There will be no reciprocal conduct from my principalities,” Soyinka said, making reference to a recent conversation he had with the US ambassador in Lagos over the revocation.

When asked if he would be willing to travel to the United States in the near future, Soyinka responded in the affirmative but ruled out the possibility of him making the move to seek his visa reinstatement.

According to him, given his age and contributions to the U.S., he owes the country nothing and vice versa.

“How old am I now? What am I looking for anywhere? Like I said, I have nothing against the American citizens. Human beings live there — friends, families, and colleagues. There are a lot of art productions going on there, and there are philosophers. There are remarkable beings in that place.

“So, if circumstances change, yes (I will), and (if) I were invited. But I won’t make the effort myself. I won’t take the initiative myself because there is nothing I’m looking for there. I’ve been responsible for the creation of some institutions in that place. I’ve given as much as I’ve taken from that place. They owe me nothing, and I owe them nothing.”

On September 10, 2025, Soyinka told PM News that he would not honour an invitation by the U.S. Consulate in Nigeria for a visa re-interview, which was scheduled for Thursday, September 11.

Making reference to the invitation on Tuesday, Soyinka said he did not honour the invitation because, on one hand, he had a problem with the date, and on the other hand, he was not interested.

He said, “I don’t know if any of you read the statement I made when I received a letter asking me to bring back my passport because certain facts may have come out since the visa was issued.

“And I was given a date to report to their consulate with my passport. I declined the invitation. First of all, I didn’t like the date. Everybody knows what happened on that date, 9/11, many years ago, so it is rather unfortunate that they picked that date. So I said, ‘Sorry, I’m superstitious; I’m not coming on that day.’ And ultimately, I made it clear I was not going to apply for another date to bring in my passport. So I travelled out.

“When I came back — even before I came back — I got a letter from the ambassador. I wish to always stress that I have absolutely nothing against individual citizens. I have a continuing good relationship with members of the U.S. embassy.”

He continued, “So we arranged a call, and I explained. Again, he offered a special visit by me at the consulate, and they would ask a few questions about the possible facts that existed that they didn’t know about when this visa was issued. We spoke, and I said, ‘Shall I be equally frank with you? I’m not interested.’”

Best known as a playwright, Soyinka won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1986. He had lived abroad, primarily in the U.S., for a long time, where he held professorships at several universities, according to The Nobel Prize.

Soyinka’s visa revocation sparks fresh conversation about recent steps taken by the U.S. to check migrant influx into the country, especially from Africa.

The U.S. Department of State had in July announced an update to its non-immigrant visa policy for Nigerian citizens.

According to a press release issued by the U.S. Embassy in Abuja, “most non-immigrant and non-diplomatic visas issued to citizens of Nigeria will be single-entry visas with a three-month validity period.”

However, the embassy clarified that “those U.S. non-immigrant visas issued before July 8, 2025, will retain their status and validity.”

In August, the U.S. Mission in Nigeria also issued a directive to visa applicants mandating the disclosure of all social media usernames and handles used over the past five years as part of the visa application process.

The directive, announced in a post on the Mission’s official X account, came as the U.S. Department of State reiterated its commitment to bolster national security through enhanced screening measures. (PUNCH)