The Federal Government has again reiterated its commitment towards reforming criminal justice administration and promotion of the rule of law in order to protect the right of citizenry.
Making this known at the National Workshop on the Implementation of Sections 29, 33 and 34 of of Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 for North-West zone in Sokoto State, the Solicitor General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, federal ministry of justice, Dayo Apata, SAN said the Act has provided a broad legal framework for more effective cross sector collaboration.
According to Apata, the Act has equally enhanced functions oversight amongst agencies as a way of ensuring that violation of human rights by security agencies is reduced to the barest minimal.
He said, “The sections are very fundamental in the sense that it has enabled all activities in the prisons well recorded, documented and streamlined in line with AGF office directives.
“More often issue regarding prison decongestion borders on not having proper documentation and data. These sections are to ensure that those data are well articulated to ensure that at the end of the day, cases of human right abuses as well as prison decongestion are attended to.
He was particularly worried that the violation of human right by security agencies has negatively affected public perception and indeed, the criminal justice system.
Speaking further, Apata observed that promotion of those provisions was no doubt aimed at promoting access to justice, reduce human abuses and other forms of ill treatment of suspects at police stations and detention facilities of other security agencies capable of violating their fundamental rights as enshrined in 1999 constitution as amended and other international human rights protocols.
Speaking earlier at the occasion, Sokoto State, Governor, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, said that the state has adopted the Act, adding that it would ensure speedy dispensation of justice.
Represented by the Attorney General of the State and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Sulaiman Usman SAN, Tambuwal informed that the Act which was signed into law by the state on May 28, 2019, is termed Sokoto State Administration of Criminal Justice Law, AJCL.
The Independence Corrupt Practices and other related crime Commission(ICPC), the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Office of Civil Litigation (DCL) and other stakeholders partook in the event.