Insight Media Replies Osun Govt Over Amnesty Controversy

…..Demands Release of Pardoned Inmates’ Details For Transparency

The management of Insight Links Media has responded to the Osun State Government’s denial of its report on the amnesty granted by Governor Ademola Adeleke to 36 inmates of the Ilesa and Ife Correctional Centres, insisting it stands by the story.

The management described the government’s statement as an attempt to attack the platform rather than clarify the facts, noting that no valid justification was provided for the call for retraction.

According to the statement Signed by its Management titled “RESPONSE TO OSUN GOVERNMENT” called on the government to publish the names, photographs, and offences of all pardoned inmates to ensure transparency.

“Our attention has been drawn to the rebuttal by the Osun State Government on our story on the amnesty granted by Governor Ademola Adeleke to Ganiyu Kehinde and 35 other criminals serving jail terms in both Ilesa and Ife Correctional Facilities.

“Having perused the statement, we found out that the government was more interested in launching an attack on Insight Links than engaging the public. The government demanded a retraction but did not advance any justification for it.

“In paragraph three of the said statement, the Osun Government looked for a convenient way of absconding from responsibility and deflected the matter to the Nigerian Correctional Service.

“The government claimed the list was recommended, but at no point in the said statement did the Osun government reveal any investigation conducted by it on the said list before it was approved.

“We affirm that a certain Ganiyu Kehinde confessed that he killed a Ghanaian friend and cut his throat for a money ritual. It is public knowledge that murder is a crime against the state, and it is the duty of any responsible government to prosecute it.

“We express worry that the state government is more interested in attacking the story than addressing the details of the story. We read the said statement, and it is concerning that the government did not provide updates on the prosecution of Kehinde Ganiyu, the confessed murderer – crux of the matter.

“Was Kehinde Ganiyu charged for stealing instead of murder? Is he still in custody? Has he been convicted? When was the last trial if he has not been convicted? Since the government is aware that a certain Kehinde Ganiyu confessed to murder and it announced a pardon for someone with the same name, we expect the government to have released his photograph for the public to be at rest that the released Kehinde Ganiyu is not the confessed murderer”.