Judiciary rules that 70 forgiven troops be reinstated, instructs military to retroactively pay wages starting from July 2022

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The National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), Lagos Division, has ordered the immediate reinstatement of 70 Nigerian Army personnel who were convicted by courts-martial in 2014 but later granted an unconditional presidential pardon by former President Muhammadu Buhari.

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In a judgment delivered on July 20, 2026, Justice S.A. Yelwa held that the presidential pardon, granted under Section 175 of the 1999 Constitution, extinguished the legal consequences of the soldiers’ convictions, sentences and dismissals from service, thereby restoring their legal status and entitling them to reinstatement.

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The suit, marked NICN/LA/54/2023, was filed by the 70 soldiers against the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) after the military authorities allegedly failed to act on their request for reinstatement following the 2022 presidential pardon.

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The claimants, represented by Falana & Falana Chambers, sought declarations that the pardon nullified their convictions and dismissals, an order compelling their reinstatement into the Nigerian Army, and payment of outstanding salaries and allowances from December 17, 2014.

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The soldiers were among Army personnel convicted by various courts-martial in 2014 on charges including conspiracy and mutiny. They were initially sentenced to death, but their sentences were later commuted to 10 years’ imprisonment.

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

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Following the pardon, the soldiers, through their lawyers, wrote to the Chief of Army Staff on November 7, 2022, seeking reinstatement and payment of outstanding salaries and allowances. Although the Army Headquarters acknowledged receipt of the letter, the claimants said no action was taken, prompting the court action.

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Counsel to the claimants, Funmi Falana, SAN, leading Chukwuma Onwumene, argued that the presidential pardon completely erased every legal consequence of the convictions, including the soldiers’ dismissal from service.

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The legal team maintained that since the dismissals were directly linked to the courts-martial convictions, the pardon automatically removed the legal basis for their removal from the Nigerian Army.

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The Attorney-General of the Federation, represented by Omobolanle Aina, opposed the claims, arguing that while a presidential pardon forgives the offence and restores civil rights, it does not erase the historical fact of conviction or automatically guarantee reinstatement into employment.

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The Federal Government also contended that salary arrears could not be awarded for periods during which the claimants neither worked nor rendered services to the Army.

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The Chief of Army Staff, however, did not enter an appearance or file a defence during the proceedings.

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In his judgment, Justice Yelwa held that the documentary evidence, including the Official Gazette, conclusively established that the claimants were beneficiaries of the presidential pardon granted on July 18, 2022.

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The court ruled that the dismissals were direct consequences of the courts-martial convictions and not separate administrative actions. It held that once the President exercised his constitutional power of mercy, the legal foundation for the dismissals ceased to exist.

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Justice Yelwa further held that allowing the dismissals to remain despite the unconditional pardon would undermine the President’s constitutional powers.

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The court described the Army’s failure to act on the soldiers’ request for reinstatement as an administrative omission subject to judicial intervention.

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On the issue of salaries, the court declined the claimants’ request for payment covering the period from December 17, 2014, to July 17, 2022, holding that they were not entitled to salaries for periods during which they were not in active service because of their incarceration.

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The judge ruled that the Instrument of Grant of Pardon did not provide for retrospective payment of salaries and that the claimants failed to establish any contractual entitlement to such payments.

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Accordingly, the court held that their entitlement to salaries and other emoluments would take effect from July 18, 2022, the date the presidential pardon became effective.

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Justice Yelwa consequently ordered the Chief of Army Staff to immediately reinstate all 70 soldiers and directed the defendants to pay their salaries, allowances and other emoluments from July 18, 2022, until their actual reinstatement.

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The court, however, dismissed the claim for salaries and allowances covering the period between December 17, 2014, and July 17, 2022, and made no order as to costs.

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The judgment is expected to have significant implications for the interpretation of the President’s constitutional prerogative of mercy, particularly regarding its effect on the employment rights of members of the Armed Forces convicted by courts-martial.

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