Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has expressed appreciation to President Muhammadu Buhari and the National Council of States, for granting state pardons to former Governors of Plateau and Taraba States, Joshua Dariye and Jolly Nyame.
Ortom who had earlier appealed to the Federal Government to review the cases of Dariye and Nyame, to grant them state pardon, welcomed the move in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Nathaniel Ikyur.
While acknowledging the gesture, 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 said Dariye and Nyame will now reunite with their families and live a happy life once again.
Dariye and Nyame were serving jail terms in Kuje Correctional Centre near Abuja, following their convictions by the courts, over financial malfeasance, while serving as governors in their states, between 1999 and 2007.
On Thursday, the National Council of States, under the Chairmanship of President Buhari, met in Abuja, and considered and approved the state pardon for Dariye, Nyame and others.
(Editor: Ifeanyi Mark)