The Legal Aid Council of Nigeria has secured the release of 39 inmates awaiting trial for over 10 years at Keffi Custodian Centre, Nasarawa State.
Director General (DG) of the council, Mr Aliyu Abubakar, made the disclosure while addressing staff of Nasarawa State Ministry of Justice in Lafia the state capital.
He also explained that through reports the council discovered over 40 awaiting trial inmates in the Keffi custodian centre who have been dumped for over ten years without any progress on their cases.
“Though the cases were from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), but as at today, we have been able to get 39 of them out of the custodian centre,” the DG noted.
He explained that the council is currently offering free legal services to a lot of indigent inmates and people across the country in line with their mandate.
He assured members of the public that the council would not rest, but would continue to provide free legal services to those who cannot afford whether in detention or free.
The DG, therefore, used the medium to express gratitude to the Nasarawa Government for providing the council with befitting office accommodation in Lafia and other assistance.
Similarly, Commissioner for Justice and Attorney-General of Nasarawa State, Mr Abdulkarim Kana, reinstated that the government would partner with the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria to ensure justice to indigent inmates in the state.
According to the AG, the partnership became imperative due to the similarity of their functions to ensure justice with a view of decongesting custodian centres in the state.
The Commissioner explained that the ministry with only 42 lawyers was working round the clock to ensure that all cases being handled by them are prosecuted timely to avoid delaying justice.
He said the ministry already has some departments that render free legal services on daily basis on issues concerning domestic violence.
“We have a department that settles threat of domestic violence before the crimes were actually committed,” he said.
The commissioner also disclosed that the ministry is developing a portal for all inmates to monitor their activities to ascertain when they are admitted or released from custodian centres.
The Commissioner also said that in the effort to decongest the custodian centres, the ministry has set up a committee to work out modalities for plea bargain as contained in the amendment criminal justice laws in the state.
” It’s better for them to be convicted than being detained on awaiting trials for many years,” he added.
Nnenna.O
