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The reaction from Saro-Wiwa’s family to the national honours differs from that the renowned environmentalist, Nnimmo Bassey, who told PREMIUM TIMES that “Ken Saro-Wiwa and the others deserve to be honoured. But coming at a time when the government is desperate to jack up oil production, while pollution continues unabated, the move is ill-timed.”

The family of Ken Saro-Wiwa says President Bola Tinubu’s conferment of national honours on Mr Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni leaders executed in 1995 by the Nigerian military dictator, Sani Abacha, “symbolises the innocence of these heroes”.

The family thanked Mr Tinubu for the honours.

Mr Saro-Wiwa and the others were executed because of their struggle for environmental justice for their oil-rich community in the Niger Delta region.

Mr Tinubu, during his address at the joint session of the National Assembly on Thursday, 12 June, to mark Nigeria’s 2025 Democracy Day, conferred posthumous national honours on Mr Saro-Wiwa (CON) and the others – Saturday Dobee (OON), Nordu Eawo (OON), Daniel Gbooko (OON), Paul Levera (OON), Felix Nuate (OON), Baribor Bera (OON), Barinem Kiobel (OON), and John Kpuine (OON).

He hinted that his administration would give a state pardon to the late Ogoni leaders.

“I shall also be exercising my powers under the prerogative of mercy to grant these national heroes a full pardon, together with others whose names shall be announced later in conjunction with the National Council of State,” the president stated in his address.

Saro-Wiwa’s family reacts

“We want to believe that the conferment of these national honours symbolises the innocence of these heroes and further re-enforces the global view that the judgement given almost 30 years ago was flawed and their execution considered to be judicial murder,” Mr Saro-Wiwa’s family said in a statement issue on 13 June, a day after Mr Tinubu’s remark.

The statement was signed by Noo Saro-Wiwa, a British-Nigerian author and daughter of the late Mr Saro-Wiwa.

She said their father and the eight other Ogoni leaders “were innocent and peaceful activists who drew the attention of the world to the plight of the Ogoni people who suffered environmental devastation due to oil drilling by Shell.”

“While thanking President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for doing the right thing, we further request a review of the judicial proceedings leading to the erroneous judgement, which occasioned such a colossal loss to our family, the Ogoni people and concerned Nigerians.

“Such a review will heal all wounds and… lead to a complete exoneration of our heroes,” she added.

The reaction from Saro-Wiwa’s family to the national honours differs from that of the renowned environmentalist, Nnimmo Bassey, who told PREMIUM TIMES that “Ken Saro-Wiwa and the others deserve to be honoured. But coming at a time when the government is desperate to jack up oil production, while pollution continues unabated, the move is ill-timed.”

Mr Bassey, the director of Health of Mother Earth Foundation, re-stated his long-held view that the Nigerian government must exonerate the Ogoni Nine of the crimes for which they were accused, instead of considering a pardon.

“A mere pardon at this time appears to be aimed at reopening the oil wells in Ogoniland — a step that would mean dancing on the graves of the murdered leaders. Exoneration is the political action we demand of the government to bring a closure to the environmental genocide and other crimes committed against the Ogoni people,” Mr Bassey told PREMIUM TIMES, Friday, a day after the president’s remark.

Previous rejection of pardon

In 2021, Mr Bassey and leaders of 10 other civil society organisations issued a statement rejecting a similar plan for state pardon for Mr Saro-Wiwa and others by the then-President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Ken Saro-Wiwa Foundation had also rejected Mr Buhari’s plan for pardon.

“His death remains a matter that is yet to be resolved because the state necessarily has to exonerate him of the false charges and the kind of kangaroo judgment that was given by that tribunal.

“Besides, the state has to apologise to the victims and to the Ogoni people for executing them when the appeal period had not even elapsed,” Mr Bassey said in a 2018 interview with PREMIUM TIMES

Mr Bassey said 10 November, the day the Ogoni Nine were executed, has always been a day for sober reflection for him.

“The day he was executed in 1995, I was at that time the secretary-general of the Association of Nigerian Authors.

“We were having our annual conference at the University of Lagos, and we were debating whether to issue a statement pleading with Abacha to have mercy and cancel the death sentence or to issue a hard-line statement condemning the atrocities of his dictatorship. Why that debate was going on, we got the news that they had been executed.

“So, it is always a very sad day for me.

“The campaign of Ken Saro-Wiwa was focused on environmental justice. And the injustice meted out on him and the Ogoni people is one of the major reasons I have made environmental justice campaign my lifetime cause.”

Accused of being responsible for the murder of four Ogoni chiefs at a pro-government meeting, Mr Saro-Wiwa and the others were sentenced to death by hanging by a special military tribunal.

Several Nigerians believe Mr Saro-Wiwa and the others were framed up for the murder because of their very impactful non-violent campaign against oil extraction and the continuous degradation of the Ogoniland by the government-backed multi-national oil companies, especially the Royal Dutch Shell.

Source: https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/800792-saro-wiwas-family-reacts-to-national-honour-pardon-from-tinubu.html?tztc=1

There is no forgiveness after punishment. A purported forgiveness after punishment means nothing but revenge.

Kenule is the name

Killed before his time 😭

“A mere pardon at this time appears to be aimed at reopening the oil wells in Ogoniland — a step that would mean dancing on the graves of the murdered leaders."

A very daft take

So, the FG can't do that without conferring the National honor on him? Dem for hol FG?


Make Dem rest please

Na just honor Dem wan honor am. No be everything Dem dey do with ulterior motive

So who actually killed the ogoni pro govt people then...?

Nothing wrong with oil production as long as the environment is taken care off.

immortalcrown:
There is no forgiveness after punishment. A purported forgiveness after punishment means nothing but revenge.

What is wrong with some of you to the extent you are so miserable and joyless? Did you arrive the world depressed and bitter?

PBAT was not the leader under who Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni Nine were convicted and recieved "punishment".

He has done what is fitting as the leader of Nigeria today and the Saro-Wiwa family have thanked him. Move on, give credit where due and stop crying more than the bereaved.

WizardOfNG:
What is wrong with some of you to the extent you are so miserable and joyless? Did you arrive the world depressed and bitter?

PBAT was not the leader under who Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni Nine were convicted and recieved "punishment".

He has done what is fitting as the leader of Nigeria today and the Saro-Wiwa family have thanked him. Move on, give credit where due and stop crying more than the bereaved.

Is the forgiveness from your PBAT or from Nigerian government?

Answer this question, let's know who is miserable, joyless, bitter and depressed here.

If you believe the forgiveness is from your PBAT and not from the Nigerian government that your PBAT represens, you are basically saying that Ken was murdered by your PBAT.

Nigerian government killed Ken. Tinubu has acted on behalf of the government. My comment is about the same government. If not that you are a daft, you would not personalize my comment to your PBAT. Or, are you indirectly saying that your PBAT was the one that killed Ken?

Okay
Ok. Okay. Okay. Okies

Not enough original content

What an insult to the memory amd legacy of saro wiwa

Dvmb family, so we can now judge their father actions through their dvmb intake .

EvilMerodack:
A very daft take

So, the FG can't do that without conferring the National honor on him? Dem for hol FG?


Make Dem rest please

Na just honor Dem wan honor am. No be everything Dem dey do with ulterior motive

Stop wasting your precious time on Obidients

They will even insult and cancel the entire Ken Saro Wiwa's family for appreciating the president. 😂

immortalcrown:
There is no forgiveness after punishment. A purported forgiveness after punishment means nothing but revenge.

I have learned something here.
How can you forgive who you already published for the purported crime.... I mean capital punishment... killed.

The family thanked Mr Tinubu for the honours.

Tflex01:
Stop wasting your precious time on Obidients

They will even insult and cancel the entire Ken Saro Wiwa's family for appreciating the president. 😂

Ah! One of those who see Obidients everywhere they go............ Sad life. 😂😂😂😂

Did he commit any offence in the first place? He said the government was destroying their land, that they needed to compensate them as their means of livelihood was being threatened. How's that an offence?

Zetty177x:
Vvvvvvvvvvvvv
Vvvvvvbbbbbb
Vvvvvbbbbb

Nairaland is looking for long comment of 40 characters. Make una de play.

Why are you using my Harvard code to bypass something here, you must pay me 10 billion dollars for using my Harvard code, hahaha............................................ 🤣

Abeg, who be the activist dem use letter bomb kill??

Good one from the family.

Tinubu the unifier .

Does the Dead Receives Honors? Imagine Pardoning the Dead ... The Dictator Fierce Judgement has Already Ended Saro Wiwa Life.So What this One Doing ..Of What Significance is the Honor and Pardon Mtcheww..Let the dead Rest .. Honors Award as a Campaign tool

FG has said sorry naa take the award and let them drill their oyel....cause that's what this is all about they really don't care

Sani Abacha was a mad man who used nigerias money for personal enrichment

Did Ken Saro Wiwa actually committed an offence? If YES, the he needs PARDON and FORGIVENESS.

However, if he was unjustly executed, the he deserves APOLOGY from the government not pardon.

omoadeleye:
Dvmb family, so we can now judge their father actions through their dvmb intake .

Kindly explain what's wrong in what they said

Ikaeniyan0:
Kindly explain what's wrong in what they said

A simple thanks is okay, all the trying to increase bpp production is not necessary, govt would still go ahead and do it.

And their father or husband is not the only one on the list.