I Was Unfairly Convicted – Ex-Plateau Gov. Dariye Reacts To Presidential Pardon

A former Governor of Plateau State, Senator Joshua Dariye has said he was unfairly convicted.

His statement comes after he was pardoned by the Council of State.

Speaking through his spokesman, Christopher John, on Thursday, Senator Dariye said he was unfairly convicted and his pardon was a form of vindication.

John, however, disclosed that his principal’s planned release had nothing to do with the fact that he is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

He said: “We are so excited about this. We’ve been expecting it for a long time and fortunately, it has come at this time.

“We thank God and the government for granting him this pardon. The Nigerian system has made many court judgments unreliable. You can be roped into things you know nothing about.

“I believe that it is the will of God for him to be released. I don’t trust the Nigerian court system. Jolly Nyame was also released and we thank God.

“It has nothing to do with them being in the APC. It was even the PDP that charged them to court. The APC was not in power when this thing started. We know the genesis.”

Recall that the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, had said the Council of State had approved presidential pardons for 159 out of 162 convicts nationwide.

The minister made this known while addressing journalists after the Council of State meeting in Abuja on Thursday.

He said the council rejected a proposal to grant pardon to one of the prisoners sentenced to 120 years for theft of over N25bn.

Though the minister refused to disclose the identity of the prisoner in question, he said the pardon was sought on health grounds.