The National Industrial Court (NIC) in Lagos has ordered the Nigerian Army to reinstate 70 soldiers who were convicted by courts-martial in 2014 but later granted a presidential pardon by former President Muhammadu Buhari.

Delivering judgment on July 20, Justice Sanda Yelwa held that the unconditional pardon granted under Section 175 of the 1999 Constitution effectively nullified the soldiers’ convictions, sentences and dismissals, thereby restoring their legal status and entitling them to reinstatement.

The ruling was disclosed in a statement issued by Tayo Soyemi of Falana & Falana Chambers, legal representatives to the claimants. The suit, marked NICN/LA/54/2023, was filed against the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) following the military’s alleged failure to act on the soldiers’ request for reinstatement after the presidential pardon.

The claimants had sought declarations that the pardon invalidated their convictions and dismissals, as well as an order compelling their reinstatement and payment of outstanding salaries and allowances from December 17, 2014.

The soldiers were initially tried before various courts-martial in 2014 on charges including conspiracy and mutiny. Though originally sentenced to death, their punishment was later commuted to 10 years’ imprisonment.

After serving their terms, they were granted an unconditional pardon by Buhari through the Instrument of Grant of Pardon, 2022, published in the Federal Republic of Nigeria Official Gazette on July 29, 2022.

According to the statement, the soldiers, through their counsel, wrote to the COAS on November 7, 2022, requesting reinstatement and payment of entitlements but received no response despite acknowledgment of the letter.

Funmi Falana (SAN), who led the legal team for the claimants, argued that the presidential pardon extinguished all legal consequences of the convictions, including their dismissal from service.

However, the Federal Government, represented by Omobolanle Aina, contended that while a presidential pardon forgives an offence and restores civil rights, it does not erase the fact of conviction or automatically guarantee reinstatement.

Notably, the Chief of Army Staff neither entered an appearance nor filed a defence in the case.

In his ruling, Justice Yelwa stated that the official gazette served as conclusive evidence that all 70 soldiers benefited from the presidential pardon. He further held that the Army failed to challenge the evidence or justify its inaction regarding the reinstatement request.

The court ruled that the soldiers’ dismissals, being direct consequences of their convictions, could not stand following the pardon. While noting that reinstatement requires administrative procedures by the Army, the judge affirmed that the claimants had acquired an enforceable legal right to return to service.

On the issue of salaries, the court declined to award arrears from December 17, 2014, to July 17, 2022, on the grounds that the soldiers were incarcerated and did not render service during that period. The judge also noted that the pardon instrument did not provide for retrospective payment.

Consequently, the court ordered the immediate reinstatement of the soldiers, effective July 18, 2022, and directed the defendants to pay all salaries, allowances, and emoluments accruing from that date until their actual reinstatement.