Abuja-based lawyer, Deji Adeyanju, says state governors do not have powers to pardon terrorists. In a statement on Thursday, Adeyanju condemned the practice of some state governors granting amnesty to terrorists as part of non-kinetic strategies to address the country’s worsening security challenges. Reacting, some state governments adopted dialogue, negotiation and amnesty programmes, offering pardons, financial incentives and rehabilitation packages to armed groups in exchange for laying down their weapons. According to Adeyanju, beyond the policy debate, the actions of state governors in granting amnesty to terrorists lack constitutional backing. “Under Section 212 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended, a governor’s power of pardon is limited strictly to offences created by laws of the state.