Bilyaminu’s family flays Tinubu’s pardon to killer wife, Maryam Sanda, says “It’s worst injustice”

The family of the late Bilyaminu Bello has picked holes in President Bola Tinubu’s decision to grant a presidential pardon to his wife, Maryam Sanda, who was convicted and sentenced to death for his murder, saying the move was “the worst possible injustice any family could be made to go through.”

In a statement made available on Monday and signed by Dr. Bello Mohammed on behalf of the family, the late Bello’s relatives said the pardon had reopened old wounds and made a mockery of Nigeria’s judicial system.

“To have Maryam Sanda walk the face of the earth again, free from any blemish for her heinous crime as if she had merely squashed an ant, is the worst possible injustice any family could be made to go through for a loved one,” the statement read in part.

Sanda, daughter of former Aso Savings Bank chairman, Maimuna Aliyu, was convicted on January 27, 2020, by the FCT High Court for stabbing her husband, Bilyaminu Bello, to death at their Abuja residence on November 19, 2017.

Her conviction was later upheld by the Court of Appeal in December 2020 and by the Supreme Court on October 27, 2023.

The family said they had found “some closure” after the apex court affirmed the lower courts’ rulings, only for President Tinubu’s decision to “reopen painful wounds that had barely healed.”

“Satisfied that justice had finally been served, the judgment provided some closure of sorts in the circumstance, if ever there could be one,” the family noted.

“Although the perpetrator had shown no remorse even for a fleeting moment throughout the saga, the grieving family took solace in the judgments and moved on, having painfully come to terms with the fate that life had thrust upon one of our own.”

They pointed accusing fingers on the Tinubu administration for working against the integrity of the judiciary and disregarding the emotions of the victim’s loved ones, describing the pardon as a politically motivated gesture “to appease Maryam’s family.”

“We interpret this decision as primarily driven by the sole motivation for appeasing Maryam’s family members by way of extending mercy to a certified convicted murderer, while it conveniently ignored the corresponding inexorable pain that has now been inflicted on the victim’s grieving family, friends and associates,” the statement continued.

The family further voiced outrage that the government would grant clemency to a person found guilty of premeditated murder, stressing that Sanda’s release had “dehumanised” their late son and reduced him to a “mere statistic.”

“We are compelled to issue this formal statement to humanise Bilyaminu, who is now suddenly being made to appear as if he is just another faceless anonymous individual in the long line of victims of crimes in the country,” the family said.

“The alleged grounds for Maryam Sanda’s release were predicated on appeals from her family, amongst other considerations,” the family said.

“It is pertinent to stress that Bilyaminu was also our cherished family member who was profoundly loved and deeply mourned by his teeming relations, friends and close associates following the unfortunate incident that resulted in his gruesome murder eight years ago.

“Maryam, let’s not forget, had earlier denied the same children now used to elicit sympathy and secure her release, the opportunity to know what a father’s love and care mean.”

They concluded by saying the family was deeply hurt and disappointed by the Nigerian government’s decision but would leave the matter to divine justice.

“We take solace in the simple fact that in such matters, the ultimate comprehensive justice resides purely with the Supreme Judge and our Creator, who will dispense this matter on the Day of Recompense,” the statement concluded.

Recall that President Bola Tinubu, last week, gave approval for the release of 175 inmates serving time for various offences.