Alhaji Ahmed Bello Isa, Father of the slain Bilyaminu Bello, has announced his acceptance of the clemency granted to his daughter-in-law, Maryam Sanda, by President Bola Tinubu.
Isa said that he had long forgiven Maryam Sanda for the death of his son.
Addressing a press conference on Tuesday in Abuja, Bello Isa added that he received the presidential pardon as “the will of God” and described the release of Sanda as an act of mercy.
He noted that the release would allow her to care for her two children.
“I am happy that the father of the nation has released Maryam so that she can look after her children.
“We as Muslims accept whatever comes from Almighty Allah. I have forgiven her and bear no grudges against the Federal Government or her family. Vengeance cannot bring back my son, but forgiveness can bring peace,” he said.
This came barely 24 hours after the family reportedly issued a statement condemning the pardon, saying it reopened their wounds at a time the family members thought they had moved on.
Maryam Sanda, the daughter of a former Aso Savings Executive, was convicted and sentenced to death by hanging in January 2020 for the gruesome murder of her husband, Bilyaminu Bello, in their Abuja residence.
Bilyaminu Bello was a nephew of former Peoples Democratic Party’s National Chairman, Alhaji Bello Haliru Mohammed.
Mary Sanda attacked younger Bello with a dangerous weapon in November 2017 during a domestic dispute in Abuja, killing him in the process
Elderly Bello disclosed that his appeal for mercy dated back to 2019, even before the court handed down the death sentence.
He also revealed that he had written multiple letters to authorities, including the then Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, and the Commissioner of Police in the Federal Capital Territory, seeking leniency for his daughter-in-law.
This rendered critics of the pardon as crying more than the bereaved and latching on it to prosecute to find faults in every step of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, according to one observer.
Earlier on Monday, a statement signed by Dr. Bello Mohammed on behalf of some relatives criticised the pardon, describing it as “the worst possible injustice any family could be made to go through.”
But Bello Isa dismissed the statement, saying it did not represent his position.
“That is their personal opinion. I am the father of the deceased, and I have chosen forgiveness. We may not all see things the same way, but I believe this is the right path, for peace, for the children, and for Allah’s mercy,” he said.
Below is the earlier statement from the Late Bilyaminu Ahmed Bello’s Family
In exercise of his discretionary power and authority to grant clemency under thev Prerogative of Mercy principle, His Excellency, Mr. President recently granted Presidential pardons to a total of 175 convicted persons serving jail sentences for various criminal offences. Some of those on the list included individuals on death row, and others who were pardoned posthumously.
One name that stood out for us as a family is that of Maryam Sanda, a lady convicted and sentenced to death by the FCT Hight Court on Monday, 27th January 2020, for the premeditated and cold-blooded murder of her husband and beloved family member of ours, the late Bilyaminu Ahmed Bello. Considering the delicately sensitive nature of the situation involving two innocent children of the deceased victim, the family has deliberately refrained from making any public statement or comments since the unfortunate sad incident, which occurred on that fateful night of Sunday, 19th November 2017. This was despite several sponsored write-ups from the accused perpetrator’s camp containing series of falsehoods against the deceased, without factoring the children’s best interest. We, instead, placed our trust and abiding confidence in the nation’s judicial process to run its full course and deliver justice for the deceased victim and his family.
The appeals process reaffirmed the FCT High Court’s death sentence through the Federal Court of Appeal and Supreme Court judgements of Friday, 4th December 2020, and Friday, 27th October 2023, respectively. Satisfied that justice had finally been served, the judgment provided some closure of sorts in the circumstance, if ever there could be one. Although the perpetrator had shown no remorse even for a fleeting moment throughout the saga, the grieving family took solace in the judgements and moved on, having painfully come to terms with the fate that life had thrust upon one of our own.
This latest turn of events, coming just a few years after the dastardly crime that cruelly cut short Bilyaminu’s life has, however, expectedly reopened our healing wounds. To have Maryam Sanda walk the face of the earth again, free from any blemish for her heinous crime as if she had merely squashed an ant, is the worst possible injustice any family could be made to go through for a loved one.
We are, therefore, compelled to issue this formal statement to humanise Bilyaminu, who is now suddenly being made to appear as if he is just another faceless anonymous individual in the long line of victims of crimes in the country: a mere statistical figure.
The alleged grounds for Maryam Sanda’s release were predicated on appeals from her family, amongst other considerations. It is pertinent to stress that Bilyaminu was also our cherished family member who was profoundly loved and deeply mourned by his teeming relations, friends and close associates following the unfortunate incident that resulted in his gruesome murder eight years ago. Maryam, let’s not forget, had earlier on denied the same children now used to elicit sympathy and secure her release, the opportunity to know what a father’s love and care means.
Bilyaminu’s family is deeply hurt by this latest development, which we interpret as primarily driven by the sole motivation for appeasing Maryam’s family members by way of extending mercy to a certified convicted murderer, while at the same time overlooking or conveniently ignoring the corresponding inexorable pain that has now been inflicted on the victim’s teeming grieving family members, friends and associates arising from the action.
We take solace in the simple fact that in such matters, the ultimate comprehensive justice resides purely with the Supreme Judge and our Creator, who will dispense this matter on the Day of Recompense where no one can be at liberty to intercede on behalf of anyone else.
We beseech Almighty Allah SWT to grant the soul of our dear Bilyaminu eternal rest and grant us the fortitude to continue to bear his sad loss even in the light of this latest development. May Allah also Be there at every turn of his children’s needs and raise them to be good obedient Muslims and patriotic Nigerians, Ameen.
SIGNED:
Dr. Bello Haliru Mohammed, OFR
(Dangaladiman Gwandu)
For the Late Bilyaminu Ahmed Bello’s Family
Monday, October 13, 2025
