Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State, on Friday, expressed appreciation to President Muhammadu Buhari and the Council of State for granting state pardon to former Governors of Plateau and Taraba States, Senator Joshua Dariye and Rev. Jolly Nyame.
Dariye and Nyame were serving jail terms in Kuje Correctional, Abuja, following their convictions by the courts over financial malfeasance while serving as governors between 1999 and 2007.
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While appearing on an ARISE Television interview a fortnight ago, Ortom had appealed to the federal government to review the cases of Dariye and Nyame, with a view to granting them state pardon.
On Thursday, the National Council of States under the chairmanship of Buhari met in Abuja and reportedly considered the state pardon for Dariye, Nyame and others.
In a statement, Ortom’s spokesman, Nathaniel Ikyur, said his principal thanked President Buhari and the National Council of States and the federal government over the gesture even as he admitted that some useful lessons must have been learnt from the incident.
The governor also thanked friends, families and political associates of the two leaders who stood by them during the period of their incarceration.
He added that Dariye and Nyame will now reunite with their families and live a happy life once again.
