The Supreme Court has overturned President Bola Tinubu’s decision to commute Maryam Sanda’s death sentence, ruling that the executive overstepped its authority by granting a pardon while her appeal was still before the courts.
In a judgment delivered on Friday, December 12, the court, through its judge, Moore Adumein, held that the Court of Appeal was right to affirm the trial court’s decision.
“It was wrong for the Executive to seek to exercise its power of pardon over a case of culpable homicide, in respect of which an appeal was pending,” Adumein said, adding that the presidential intervention was improper given the nature of the case.
The Supreme Court, in a split four–one decision, upheld the death sentence handed to Sanda by the Federal Capital Territory High Court and later affirmed by the Court of Appeal.
The ICIR reports that Sanda was sentenced to death by a Federal High Court in Abuja in January 2020 for stabbing her late husband, Bilyaminu Bello to death in November 2017, following a domestic altercation at their Abuja residence.
Sanda, a mother of one, filed an appeal to the Court of Appeal in February 2020, challenging the conviction. She submitted a 20-ground appeal in which the first pointed to the trial judge’s exemption to rule on her preliminary objection, where she challenged the charge against her and the jurisdiction of the court.
However, the court dismissed her appeal, ruling that the prosecution had established the charge of culpable homicide beyond reasonable doubt.
The ICIR reported that Sanda’s sentence was reduced to 12 years’ imprisonment in October 2025 after Tinubu approved a revised clemency list. The decision came after a review process that initially featured 175 names, some of which were later dropped due to what the Presidency described as the “nature of their crime.”
Presidential Adviser, Bayo Onanuga, said Sanda’s sentence was commuted “on compassionate grounds in the best interest of the children and due to her good conduct,” noting that she had demonstrated ‘remorse’.
Sanda has spent roughly six years in custody, and under the commuted sentence, she would have had about six years left to serve, however, with Friday’s ruling, the original death sentence is reinstated.
The initial decision triggered widespread public debate, including strong objections from Bello’s family. After consultations with the Council of State and consideration of what the Presidency described as “public opinion,” the clemency list was revised, excluding several individuals convicted of offences such as kidnapping, drug trafficking, and arms dealing.
Tinubu ordered the return of several convicted persons earlier granted state pardon weeks later, including Maryam Sanda and over 140 others, to prison following widespread criticisms that greeted his decision.
Onanuga said that the president formally signed a revised instrument of clemency and pardon after reviewing the earlier approved list, with input from the Council of State and feedback from the public.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues. She has documented sexual war crimes in armed conflict, sex for grades in Nigerian Universities, harmful traditional practices and human trafficking.