U.S. lawmaker Riley Moore has hailed the pardon of Sunday Jackson, a Christian farmer who was on death row for killing a Fulani herdsman in self-defence.
“Sunday Jackson is free! After more than a decade in prison serving a death sentence for defending himself, Sunday Jackson has been pardoned,” Mr Moore said in a statement on Tuesday. “I have been advocating for Sunday’s release both in public and in private meetings, including during my recent Congressional Delegation visit to Nigeria.”
Mr Moore had been at the forefront of the advocacy seeking Mr Jackson’s release, mandating it as a condition to dialogue with the Nigerian government after being designated a ‘country of particular concern’ by President Donald Trump.
At the U.S. insistence on Mr Jackson’s release, Governor Ahmad Fintiri on Tuesday issued a pardon to Mr Jackson alongside seven other prisoners.
“I continue to see positive steps that my concerns and the concerns of President Trump are being taken seriously by the Nigerian government,” Mr Moore stated. “The Nigerian government at the federal and state level must ensure Sunday’s safety during and following his release.”
Last week, Mr Trump imposed travel restrictions on Nigerians, including suspending green card and permanent residency processing, citing a lack of a security framework and visa overstays.
But Mr Moore implied “constructive discussions” were underway to establish “a strategic security framework between our two countries to tackle the multifaceted security challenges facing Nigeria”.
In 2015, Mr Jackson, a 29-year-old farmer and student from the Dong community in the Demsa LGA in Adamawa, was working on his farm in Kodomti, Numan LGA, when Buba Ardo Bawuro, a herdsman, drove his cattle to graze there.
The herdsman pulled out a knife and stabbed Mr Jackson twice for challenging him. Wounded, Mr Jackson managed to seize the knife and stab Mr Bawuro in retaliation. The herdsman later died from his wounds.
Mr Jackson was arrested, tried, and convicted of manslaughter. Consequently, he was sentenced to death by hanging, a decision upheld by the Supreme Court of Nigeria but condemned by several civil society groups.
