Legal Practitioner Makes Case For Prison Inmates, Goes To Court For Their Release

A legal practitioner has gone to court seeking release for inmates who have stayed in prison without trial for 10 years.

The legal practitioner, Barrister Nashiru Ibiloye, said he had sympathy for inmates at the Port-Harcourt Correctional Centre who have stayed in prison without trial for 10 years.

Barrister Ibiloye said: “I have sympathy for (the) inmates in Port-Harcourt prison and (as) I went to Port-Harcourt prison and saw so many people I was moved to asking questions. So when I asked questions and they said (that) a lot of them have been there without trial for over 10 years I was moved and I asked them personal questions (like) whose courts are their cases (and) most of them didn’t even know their courts and they said they have been there without trial”.

He further said: “The fundamental human rights rules allow us as a group to seek the release of a group of persons who have same problem. So what we did was to file a suit in the High Court”.

He said that people would be incarcerated in prison without trial when their cases would not be heard in court.

He said that happens when the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) would not give advice on case file brought to him by a magistrate who ordered remand of an inmate.

He said when the police arrest someone for murder for instance they would arraign the person at magistrate court which would order remand for the alleged offender because it lacked jurisdiction to try the case and would transfer the case file to DPP.

He said the inmate would spend time in jail without trial when the DPP would not give advice on his case file alleging that frequently happens.

He said cases were adjourned for DPP’s advice which would not come most of the time leading to continued incarceration of an inmate.

The legal practitioner who has library building project at the correctional centre said inmates would remain without trial when their case files remain with DPP.

He said although magistrate courts had no jurisdiction to try capital offences like murder and armed robbery they could remand alleged offenders in prison.

However he said with new law in place a magistrate court could release an inmate unconditionally after 25 days.

He said: “But the narrative has change with (the) new Administration of Criminal Justice Act. There’s (now) time allotted for each exercise. Now when the matter is brought before the magistrate he adjourns by Section 300 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act. When the matter gets before the magistrate what the magistrate does is that he adjourns the matter for 10 days to see whether the (DPP’s) advice will come and the police must remit the case file within two days”.

He further said: “After 10 days they (DPP) will come and give cause why they have not done it in 10 days (and) there will be adjournment for another 10 days. After the adjournment for 10 days there will now be adjournment for five days (making 25 days) and if nothing is done in those 25 days the magistrate has power to release the person unconditionally”.

He spoke while appearing as guest on 92.3 Nigeria Info.

He said that he was seeking release for about 150 inmates.

The legal practitioner said prisons should be decongested. He said prison facilities were stretched.

Recently, the Chief Judge of Rivers State, Hon Justice Simeon Amadi, had released 10 inmates from the Port-Harcourt Correctional Centre warning them not to go back to crime.

Of those released eight had allegedly committed major offence like murder, armed robbery and rape while two had allegedly committed less serious offence.