Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki on Friday pardoned a total of 6,700 inmates to ease congestion in penal institutions across the East African nation.
In a statement issued in Nairobi, Kibaki said the inmates to be released are those that have been convicted of petty or minor offenses who are of good conduct and convicted to serve sentences not exceeding six months.
He said the prisoners should be first offenders who are of good conduct with a balance sentence of nine months and should also be ordinary prisoners who are of good conduct and with a balance sentence of nine months.
"In this regard, those pardoned are 2,850 prisoners of good conduct convicted of petty or minor offenses serving a sentence not exceeding six months and 2,586 first offenders who are of good conduct with a balance sentence of nine months or less," the statement said.
Others are 1,227 ordinary prisoners of good conduct with a balance sentence of nine months or less and 37 prisoners aged 65 years and above who are confirmed to be terminally ill.
The release order was signed by President Kibaki in exercise of the powers conferred on him by Section 27 of the old Constitution read together with Article 133 of the new Constitution and the provisions relating to suspension of provisions of the new Constitution under the Sixth Schedule, clause 2 (1) (c).
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