Abubakr Malami (SAN) noted that, not only are the prisons overcrowded with mostly awaiting trial inmates, they are without the necessary facilities.
The minster was speaking in Abuja on Tuesday during the inauguration of a stakeholders’ committee to oversee the implementation of the Federal Executive Council’s directive to fast track the decongestion of prisons.
Malami argued that the condition of the prisons not only violates decency but it also violates the rights of the inmates.
“As a matter of fact, the state of our prisons directly touches on the fundamental human rights of these inmates and constitutes a violation of those rights.
“It is particularly worrisome that about 70 per cent of the inmates in Nigerian prisons are awaiting trial. This is rather embarrassing and an indictment of the national justice system.
“This situation contradicts international standards, including those provided in the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) that provides for limited use of pre-trial detention only when certain conditions are present,” Malami said.
The AGF stated that the role of the committee include the development of an effective and enduring strategy with timeline for implementation of stated objectives. He also noted the need for collaboration among all stakeholders for the realisation of the goals.
The committee’s Chairman and Chief Judge of the High Court of the FCT, Justice Ishaq Bello assured that his committee would do a thorough job. Justice Bello noted that states were reluctant to adopt the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) , a development partially responsible for delay in the administration of criminal cases and prison congestion. Part 44, sections 453, 460 and 468 of the ACJA make provisions on no-custodial sentences as a means of decongesting the prisons.
The judge also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to encourage state Governors to adopt the ACJA as a way of ensure prompt handling of criminal cases and elimination of congestion in prisons.
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we want to see Maina and the other criminals in jails!