Nigeria’s Supreme Court on Friday overturned the presidential pardon granted to Maryam Sanda, the Abuja housewife convicted of stabbing her husband to death in 2018, reinstating her original death sentence by hanging.

Sanda, 37, was sentenced to death in January 2020 by Justice Yusuf Halilu of the FCT High Court for culpable homicide punishable with death after she fatally stabbed Bilyaminu Bello during a heated domestic dispute over alleged infidelity. The Court of Appeal upheld the conviction in December 2020, and the Supreme Court affirmed it in 2023, exhausting her appeals.

In October 2025, President Bola Tinubu initially granted Sanda a full pardon as part of clemency extended to 175 convicts, citing her family’s pleas for the sake of her two children, her good conduct in prison, and remorse. However, amid public backlash, the administration revised the decision, commuting her sentence to 12 years imprisonment on compassionate grounds.

The Supreme Court’s 4-1 majority decision, delivered by Justice Moore Adumein, dismissed Sanda’s final appeal as meritless. Adumein ruled that the prosecution had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt, affirming the lower courts’ findings that Sanda’s actions constituted intentional murder.

Crucially, the apex court held that the executive branch’s exercise of pardon powers under Section 175 of the 1999 Constitution was invalid in this instance, as Sanda’s appeal was still pending before the judiciary at the time of the grant. “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,” Justice Adumein stated in the lead judgment.

The dissenting justice argued for upholding the commutation, emphasizing humanitarian considerations for Sanda’s children and her time served—over seven years at Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre.

The ruling has reignited national debates on the separation of powers, domestic violence, and the application of the death penalty. Sanda’s family expressed devastation, while Bello’s relatives hailed the decision as long-overdue justice. Rights groups decried the outcome, calling for legislative reforms on prerogative of mercy.

Sanda remains in custody pending any further legal maneuvers, though options appear exhausted. The Attorney General’s office confirmed investigations into the pardon process’s procedural flaws.

•Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo

Bayelsa State Deputy Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, is dead,aged 60.

Ewhrudjakpo collapsed yesterday while descending a staircase shortly after a meeting in his office .

He was immediately taken to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Yenagoa.

Hospital sources disclosed that he arrived unconscious and was moved to the Emergency Unit before being transferred to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and efforts to revive him failed.

His media aide, Doubara Atasi, confirmed the incident but did not provide further details.

Sympathizers stormed the hospital in large numbers after the news broke, forcing security personnel to tighten control around the facility.

Ewhrudjakpo was born on September 5, 1965. He had served as deputy governor since 2020, represented Bayelsa West in the Senate, and previously held the position of Commissioner for Works.

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary Ini Ememobong confirmed the demise of the deputy governor, which it described as inexplicable.

Senator Ewhurudjakpo, 60, an associate of Senator Seriake Dickson, was one of the elected officials, who insisted on remaining in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and refused to defect with Governor Duoye Diri to the All Progressives Congress, APC, recently.

Ewhrudjakpo, once a close political ally of Governor Diri, reportedly fell out with his principal after refusing to follow him in resigning from the PDP on October 15.

Nigerian industrialist Aliko Dangote received a standing ovation on Thursday from the government and stakeholders in the education sector as he launched a N1 trillion education fund to support 1.3 million students across the country’s 774 Local governments.

Speaking at the launch in Lagos, Dangote said that the N100 billion yearly education support initiative will support 45,000 new students every year from 2026, rising to 155,000 beneficiaries by the fourth year and remaining at that level for ten years.

Dangote described the initiative as a long-term investment aimed at reducing financial barriers that drive millions of young Nigerians out of school.

Dangote notes that “no nation can rise above the quality of education it offers its young people.”

He described education as “the foundation on which every prosperous society is built”, calling it the most powerful equaliser and the strongest engine of social mobility.

” We cannot allow financial hardship to silence the dreams of our young people — not when the future of our nation depends on their skills, resilience and leadership,” Dangote said.

The Presidency praised Dangote for unveiling what is now the largest private education support programme in Nigeria, describing the initiative as a major boost to the Federal Government’s human capital development agenda.

Vice President Kashim Shettima said the intervention demonstrates the critical role of private-sector actors in national development.

He noted that Nigeria’s demographic growth makes urgent investment in education indispensable, warning that “a population becomes a liability only when it is uneducated.”

“Alhaji Aliko Dangote, through his far-reaching philanthropy, has set in motion the single largest private-sector education support intervention in the history of this country,” Shettima said.

“What he has done here today is a lesson to each of us. This is nation-building in its purest form.”

Shettima highlighted ongoing reforms under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, including the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), strengthened basic education infrastructure through UBEC, expanded TETFUND interventions and accelerated technical and vocational programmes.

He said these reforms aim to improve Nigeria’s poor Human Capital Index ranking and prepare young people for a skills-driven global economy.

Describing Dangote’s philanthropy as “long-term,” Shettima said the initiative aligns strongly with the government’s priority of expanding equitable access to education.

“No nation surpasses the aspirations of its most committed patriots,” he said.

“The legacy of Alhaji Aliko Dangote reminds us that greatness is not measured by wealth but by the number of lives one lifts from the shadows into the light.

”The Vice President added that the Aliko Dangote Foundation programme will widen opportunities for thousands of learners and bolster the FG’s efforts to build a competitive workforce.

He called for stronger collaboration between the the government, the private sector and development partners to address persistent gaps in the education system.

Education Minister Tunji Alausa described the initiative as “pure human capital development,” saying it aligns with the Tinubu administration’s education sector renewal plan of transforming Nigeria from resource-based economy to a knowledge-based economy and is significant because every local government area will benefit.

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, spoke on behalf of the 36 state governors.

He also commended the initiative and pledged the governors’ full support.

Chairman of the Programme Steering Committee, His Highness Justice Sidi Dauda Bage, Emir of Lafia, said the scheme is unprecedented and praised Dangote’s patriotism in reinvesting his wealth to uplift other Nigerians.

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, said Dangote’s impact in driving private-sector transformation remains unmatched, describing the new initiative as both transformational and a strategic investment in Nigeria’s future.