YAOUNDE, Cameroon: Chadian President, Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, has signed two decrees granting presidential pardons to nine political leaders and partial sentence reductions to other convicts across the country, Xinhua reported Friday morning (Aug. 14), citing the presidency.
Former Prime Minister Succes Masra, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison and ordered to pay 1 billion CFA francs (about USD1.76 million) in damages, is among the beneficiaries of the pardon.
Eight leaders of the Consultation Group of Political Actors, including party presidents and secretaries-general, have also been pardoned following requests submitted to the head of state.
The nine political figures will be released once the Ministry of Justice completes the required formalities. While the decision, initially announced by Mahamat Deby on August 10 on the eve of Chad’s Independence Day, lifts the prison sentences, authorities said it does not cancel civil penalties, which remain enforceable.
Masra, president of Chad’s opposition political party, The Transformers, served as prime minister of the transitional government from January to May 2024. He was arrested in May 2025 and sentenced in August 2025 for “inciting hatred and revolt” and complicity in murder. – BERNAMA-XINHUA
