FIDA raises alarm over prison congestion
The Kwara state chapter of the Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) has raised alarm over congestion of prisons in the country saying over 70 per cent of inmates in Nigeria prisons are on awaiting list. Speaking with journalists at a workshop on the administration of criminal justice act (ACJA) in Ilorin, the chairperson of FIDA […]
The Kwara state chapter of the Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) has raised alarm over congestion of prisons in the country saying over 70 per cent of inmates in Nigeria prisons are on awaiting list.
Speaking with journalists at a workshop on the administration of criminal justice act (ACJA) in Ilorin, the chairperson of FIDA in the state, Hajia Salmat Muhammed, said that abuse of the administration of criminal justice act by officers of the country’s judicial system, had compounded the issue.
The FIDA chairperson, who commended government and the police authority for provision of additional police stations in parts of the country, said that creation of more police stations and more prison facilities should be at same time.
She also called for more enlightenment campaigns on the ACJA to enable people know their rights and how to pursue them, while calling on states of the federation to domesticate the act like Kwara state.
Mohammed said people should know that every accused person should be taken to court within 48 hours after arrest, adding that the person should also be allowed to communicate with his/her lawyer as contained in the act.
She said that the act also stated that an accused person should not be remanded in police custody for more than 28 days before the person is charged to court.
Also speaking, the Kwara state Chief Judge, Justice Sulaiman Kawu, who was represented by Justice Mohammed Adewara, commended activities of FIDA at resolving series of matrimonial cases in the state.
The CJ, who said that such cases had been done free of charge for women and indigent people in the society, called on members of the association not to relent in their effort towards achieving a more peaceful society.
In her presentation, titled, Institutional and policy reform around ACJA, solicitor general and permanent secretary, Kwara state ministry of Justice, Dr. Mrs. Maryam Mustapha, highlighted some aspects of the reform which prohibited arrest of suspects on civil wrongs that did not constitute criminal case, among others.