The Law Hub Development and Advocacy Centre, weekend, called for speedy implementation of Administration of Criminal Justice Law (ACJL) in Akwa Ibom to decongest prison in the state.
Mr. Osita Okoro, the Executive Director of Law Hub Development and Advocacy Centre made the call in his remarks during a one-day capacity building for the Administration of Criminal Justice Monitoring Committee (ACJMC) in Uyo.
Ostia represented by Mr. Joshua Dada, a consultant with the centre, urged the Akwa Ibom government to ensure the establishment of a functional, effective, and efficient Secretariat for the delivery of the overall mandate of the ACJMC.
He stressed that the secretariat when established will help to resolve the bottleneck being experienced in the administration of criminal justice law.
Ostia noted, “It is incumbent on the Akwa Ibom State legislature and criminal justice stakeholders to make provisions for the establishment and operation of the ACJMC and its Secretariat to ensure the standards set out above are adopted and implemented in line with the local context of Akwa Ibom state.”
Also speaking, the Controller of the Akwa Ibom Correctional service, Mr. Julius Ezeugwu revealed that 2,413 out of 2,851 inmates were awaiting trial in his facilities.
He said the large number of inmates awaiting trial was responsible for the congestion of the four custodia centres in the state.
Ezeugwu, who noted that their facilities were meant to be a place to reform convicts and not take care of awaiting trial persons, also appealed for the speedy implementation of ACJL to help decongest the prison.
Meanwhile, during her remarks, Justice Ekaette Obot, the Akwa Ibom Chief Judge, mentioned that the domestication of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act by the Criminal Justice Law of the state would have a significant impact on the criminal justice system in the state.
Justice Obot commended the Centre for organising the workshop to equip committee members with relevant knowledge to function effectively.
She urged participants to take the training seriously, adding that the knowledge acquired from the event would help in the administration of criminal justice in the state.
Participants in the training were drawn from the Ministry of Justice, Nigerian Bar Association, Nigeria Correctional Service, Nigeria Police, and Non-Governmental Organisations across the state.
