The Gaba Development Association in Lavun Local Council of Niger State has lamented the state pardon granted to the 11 people sentenced to death by Justice Maimuna A. Abubakar of the State High Court for culpable homicide of seven innocent and unarmed individuals from Gaba. They have appealed to Governor Mohammed Bago to withdraw the amnesty without delay.

The Chairman of Gaba Development Association, Mr. Paul Gana, who raised the concern at a press briefing in Minna, said the state pardon may not go down well with the victims’ families.

Mr. Paul hinted that the victims were attacked on their farmlands in 2018 by the convicted persons, during which seven people lost their lives and two others sustained serious injuries.

Mr. Gana highlighted that Gaba community relentlessly pursued the case for about four years, stressing however that Justice Maimuna A. Abubakar of Niger State High Court, in a 779-page judgment of 2nd February 2022, found the 11 convicts guilty of conspiracy and culpable homicide and sentenced them individually to death by hanging.

“As I am crying here in Minna, the people in the village are also crying. Therefore, we are calling on Governor Muhammad Umaru Bago to reconsider the state pardon and allow us to sleep in our land,” he said.

Gana disclosed that during the peace meeting claimed by the government, Gaba community was not carried along, hence the need for reversal of the amnesty in order to allow peace to remain in Gaba and neighboring villages.

The Gaba Community Development Association Chairman further explained that shortly after Governor Bago set the 11 convicts free, the Attorney General and Niger State Commissioner of Justice, Barrister Nasiru Mu’azu, revealed the state pardon during an interaction with newsmen at Government House Minna. He said the convicts were involved in a communal clash between Gaba and Amfani communities in Lavun Local Council which led to the loss of lives.

Barrister Mu’azu noted that the state pardon was exercised under the constitutional powers of the state governor, stressing that the pardon was granted as a result of a written request which was reviewed by the governor alongside the State Advisory Committee on the prerogative of mercy.

The AG also maintained that the state pardon was part of reconciliatory efforts to ensure lasting peace returns to Gaba and Amfani communities, saying that several meetings were convened and all issues had been resolved.

The Commissioner of Justice said the state pardon was signed on 28th May 2025 and has been gazetted.

The eleven pardoned convicts are Mohammed Mohammed, Ndana Alhaji Sheshi, Isah Baba Madu, Mohammed Mohammed Nda Bida, Abubakar Baba Salihu, Baba Mohammed Shaba, Adamu Mohammed Baba, Haruna Muhammed, Isah Mohammed Alhaji Inuwa, Ibrahim Mohammed, and Mohammed Isah.