The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has lauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for granting a posthumous pardon to the nine Ogoni rights activists executed in 1995 under the military regime of the late General Sani Abacha. The activists—Ken Saro-Wiwa, Dr. Nubari Kiobel, Nordu Eawo, Saturday Doobe, John Kpuinen, Paul Levura, Daniel Gbokoo, Felix Nuate, and Baribor Bera—were hanged after a controversial tribunal widely condemned as flawed and politically motivated.
In a statement signed by MOSOP President, Fegalo Nsuke, the group described the President’s gesture, announced during the 2025 Democracy Day address, as historic and a bold step towards national healing and reconciliation.
“It is a widely acknowledged fact that few administrations have dared to confront this painful legacy with such candor and daring,” Nsuke said. “President Tinubu has distinguished himself as a leader with the wisdom and courage to respond to a longstanding demand from an oppressed people with compassion and clarity.”
The statement further praised the President’s acknowledgment of the injustice suffered by Saro-Wiwa and his compatriots, noting that his public recognition of the moral injury inflicted by their execution has been met with gratitude both nationally and internationally.
However, MOSOP emphasized that while the presidential pardon is a welcome and vital milestone, it does not fully address the gravity of the injustice.
“A pardon, by its nature, implies the existence of a crime. In the case of Ken Saro-Wiwa and the others, no legitimate offense was committed,” the statement read. “Their convictions were the result of a deeply flawed and politically charged process.”
Citing President Tinubu’s own words that “their unjust execution should never have happened,” MOSOP urged the administration to take the next step by pursuing a formal exoneration of the Ogoni Nine.
“We appeal to His Excellency to go further by establishing a Judicial Commission of Inquiry to investigate and formally repudiate the irregularities of the 1995 tribunal. Such an act would amount to complete restorative justice and would further cement President Tinubu’s legacy as a leader of courage and conscience,” Nsuke added.
MOSOP concluded by commending the administration for initiating a process of healing and justice, expressing hope that history would remember this government not only for its boldness but for its commitment to truth and national unity.