By Ibrahim Ramalan
Legal Aid Council of Nigeria has entered into a partnership with the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) Unity Bar, FCT chapter, in a bid to attain its mandate of decongesting the country’s detention centres.
On this note, the Director-General of Legal Aid Council Mrs. Joy Bob-Manuel and the chairperson of the NBA unity BAR, Mrs. Betty Umegbulem visited Keffi Prisons last week in company of some NBA officials and Legal Aid Council lawyers.
Bob-Manuel said the collaboration in the area of prison visitation was to enable the council deliver on its mandate. She said: “Legal Aid Council by its mandate is expected to visit Prison and detect who needs representation. Private lawyers, who belong to the NBA and are desirous of representing indigent citizens are also partnering with Legal Aid Council on pro-bono basis and from the way things are going Legal Aid Council is equal to the task.”
The NBA chairperson Unity Bar of FCT Chapter on her own part pointed out that NBA was collaboration with Legal Aid Council in Prison visitation to help identify clients and assist in prosecuting.
She further stressed that apart from prisons there were other areas unity Bar reaches to people, adding that the aim was to inform people that the NBA is interested in their affairs on the issue of cases of human rights violations against persons.
While commenting on the visit, the Deputy Controller of Prisons, James Lander, disclosed that Keffi Prisons has 449 inmates out of which 326 are awaiting trials, while 123 are convicts.
He, however, disclosed that he had written to the Chief Judge of the FCT High Court, Justice Ishaq Bello, requesting him to come and help decongest the Prison.
“Interestingly majority of the inmates are from FCT Command, while prevailing crimes among them are armed robbery, culpable homicide and so on.”