The family of the late Bilyaminu Ahmed Bello has strongly condemned the recent presidential pardon granted to Maryam Sanda, describing it as an act that has “reopened our healing wounds” and delivered “the worst possible injustice.”
The family’s reaction was contained in a statement signed by Dr. Bello Haliru Mohammed (OFR) on behalf of the late Bilyaminu’s relatives. The statement came shortly after Sanda’s name appeared on the list of 175 inmates granted clemency under the Federal Government’s prerogative of mercy.
Bilyaminu Bello was k+lled by his wife, Maryam Sanda, on November 19, 2017. She was convicted and sentenced to d+ath by the FCT High Court on January 27, 2020 a ruling that was upheld by the Court of Appeal in December 2020 and later affirmed by the Supreme Court on October 27, 2023.
However, the family said the recent pardon has undermined that sense of justice and reopened old wounds. “To have Maryam Sanda walk the face of the earth again, free from any blemish for her heinous cr+me 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.
The family also condemned what they called the “appeasement” of Sanda’s relatives, arguing that the clemency decision ignored the memory of the victim and the pa+n endured by his extended family. They criticized the justification for her release reportedly based on appeals from her family and sympathy for her two children stating that such reasoning was misplaced.
“Maryam, let’s not forget, had earlier on denied the same children now used to elicit sympathy and secure her release, the opportunity to know what a father’s love and care means,” they added.
Concluding the statement, the Bello family said they would continue to take solace in divine justice, affirming their belief that “ultimate and comprehensive justice rests with the Supreme Judge and our Creator.”
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