Presidential pardon: Dalung-led group bargains freedom for Abba Kyari

“The Movement for the Emancipation of Nigeria (MEN) observes with deep concern the continued detention and prosecution of Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Abba Kyari despite recent presidential pardons extended to convicted drug traffickers, fraudsters, kidnappers, and bandits—many of whom were arrested by his team in the line of duty,” the statement issued on Tuesday by MEN’s Comrade-General, former sports minister Solomon Dalung read.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency arraigned Kyari and six others in March 2022 on allegations of conspiring to tamper with and traffic 21.35 kilograms of cocaine seized from suspected drug traffickers.

Last week, President Bola Tinubu granted presidential pardons to 175 persons, including the late nationalist, Herbert Macaulay, the late Major General Mamman Vatsa, and Maryam Sanda, who was sentenced to death for murdering her husband.

The move has sparked diverse controversies among Nigerians who knocked the decision of the presidency.

“The recent wave of presidential amnesties and pardons has effectively emptied the moral and legal basis for Kyari’s continued detention. His prosecution under such circumstances represents a double standard that undermines the integrity of Nigeria’s justice system.”

“MEN views this as a clear case of institutional betrayal against a man who once risked his life in the service of national security and public order. Justice demands consistency, and equity demands that mercy must not be reserved for the guilty while punishment is sustained against the righteous,” the statement added.

The organisation urged “the President and the Attorney-General of the Federation to discontinue all charges against DCP Abba Kyari and secure his immediate release. Anything short of this will amount to a travesty of justice and a dangerous precedent that discourages public officers from dedicating themselves to the fight against crime”.

Kyari, a former head of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) of the police, has a long service record of arresting suspects, which earned him the nickname “super cop” and multiple awards. He was arrested on 14 February 2022 after the NDLEA declared him wanted over allegations of conspiring to tamper with and traffic 21.35 kilograms of cocaine seized from suspected drug traffickers. He pleaded not guilty.