{"id":182778,"date":"2025-10-17T19:10:52","date_gmt":"2025-10-17T18:10:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/lawyer-requests-posthumous-pardon-for-col-akaahan"},"modified":"2025-10-17T20:13:45","modified_gmt":"2025-10-17T19:13:45","slug":"lawyer-requests-posthumous-pardon-for-col-akaahan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/lawyer-requests-posthumous-pardon-for-col-akaahan","title":{"rendered":"Lawyer Requests Posthumous Pardon for Col. Akaahan"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #ff6600\"><strong>Africa-Press &#8211; Nigeria. <\/strong><\/span>A professor of law, Sabastine Hon, SAN, has pleaded with President Bola Tinubu to grant full posthumous pardon to late former Chief of Army Staff, Col. Joseph Akaahan, in recognition of his sterling contributions to the Nigerian Army and the nation at large.<\/p>\n<p>In a letter to the President dated October 17, 2025, Hon who wrote as a concerned citizen of Benue State, chronicled the sterling qualities and military profile of the late army officer.<\/p>\n<p>Akaahan was Nigeria\u2019s second Chief of Army Staff, after the then Col. Yakubu Gowon.<\/p>\n<p>Attesting to his brilliant military career and the circumstances of his death, the lawyer noted, \u201cOwing to his diligence and excellence in professional military service both at home and abroad, Col. Akaahan was appointed the Chief of Army Staff in May, 1967, shortly before the outbreak of the Nigerian civil war.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn this position, Col. Akaahan was reputed to have been centrally instrumental to the exploits of the Col. Benjamin Adekunle \u201cOperation Sea-borne\u201d operations during the war, even though this is not meant to refresh the collective memories of our ugly past.<\/p>\n<p>Hon stated that Akaahan ran into trouble when he flew in a military helicopter from the war zone to Gboko, Benue State, for a brief touch with home before proceeding to Lagos.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, the lawyer said that in less than 20 kilometers after takeoff to Lagos on the evening of August 6, 1967, the military helicopter crashed and Akaahan died instantly.<\/p>\n<p>The Federal Government, according to the New York Times of August 7, 1967, officially announced the death of its then Army Chief.<\/p>\n<p>Hon explained that the Army authorities felt that Akaahan had embarked upon an \u2018unauthorised\u2019 trip to Gboko where he met his untimely death at the young age of 30 years. He was, consequently, posthumously arraigned and summarily dismissed from the Nigerian Army.<\/p>\n<p>He regretted that the dismissal has not been reversed till date, even though the same Army is still proud of his services \u2013 by maintaining a large military facility in his favour.<\/p>\n<p>In recognition of his contributions to the Nigerian Army and the Federation at large, the Nigerian Army named the Military Cantonment in Makurdi, Benue State, after him. The facility is known till date as the Joe Akaahan Military Cantonment, Makurdi.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe immediate-past Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Labaja of blessed memory, in 2024, visited the Cantonment and unveiled a Military Hospital thereat,\u201d Hon pointed out.<\/p>\n<p>He urged President Tinubu to invoke his constitutional powers under Chapter 6, Section 157, to extend clemency to the late army officer as was recently done to 175 living and deceased Nigerians.<\/p>\n<p>The late Col. Joseph Akaahan was born on April 12, 1937 to the Akaahan Agbo Kpile Family of Vandeikya Local Government Area of Benue State. He attended Government College, Keffi, in today\u2019s Nasarawa State, between 1952 and 1956, where he obtained the Cambridge School Certificate.<\/p>\n<p>He subsequently trained in the officer cadre of the Royal West African Frontier Force (RWAFF) Training School. Teshi, Ghana between 1957 and 1958 and subsequently, the prestigious Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, United Kingdom, between 1958 and 1960.<\/p>\n<p>Upon successful completion of these military and officer-cadre courses, Akaahan was commissioned as an officer in the Nigerian Army on July 23, 1960. Rising through the ranks, Akaahan was constituted as an officer in the Nigerian contingent to the UN Peacekeeping Operations in Congo, in 1966, whereat he performed excellently well.<\/p>\n<p>The letter added, \u201cYour Excellency, in a State House publication of October 12, 2025, granted presidential pardon to several living and deceased Nigerians, totaling one hundred and seventy-five (175).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn that list are persons convicted as far back as during the colonial administration; those convicted even for heinous crimes like coup plots, internal insurrection, murder, and the like. It is indecorous and disrespectful for me to mention the names of the persons who have fallen under these categories.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn view of the fact that Col. Joseph Akaahan\u2019s offence was dereliction of duty (no matter how labeled by the military high command then), I most humbly and responsibly plead that Your Excellency should kindly extend this hand of state forgiveness, which is steeped in section 175 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended, by also granting full posthumous pardon to Col. Joseph Akaahan.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is even heartwarming that the Hon. Attorney-General of the Federation, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, who doubles as the Chairman of the Presidential Prerogative of Mercy, announced on October 16, 2025, that the list of pardoned 175 Nigerians is still under \u201creview.\u201d This, then, makes it quite auspicious and timely for this humble request of mine.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour Excellency shall be greatly blessed if he grants this request. Kindly imagine the joy Your Excellency will bequeath to the immediate family of the pardoned person and Benue State at large, if you extend your kind gesture to Col. Akaahan.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>For More News And Analysis About <span style=\"color: #ff6600\">Nigeria<\/span> Follow <span style=\"color: #ff6600\">Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Africa-Press &#8211; Nigeria. A professor of law, Sabastine Hon, SAN, has pleaded with President Bola Tinubu to grant full posthumous pardon to late former Chief of Army Staff, Col. Joseph Akaahan, in recognition of his sterling contributions to the Nigerian Army and the nation at large. In a letter to the President dated October 17, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":182777,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,14],"tags":[254],"class_list":["post-182778","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-nigeria"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.1 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Lawyer Requests Posthumous Pardon for Col. 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