The House of Representatives has mandated the Federal Ministry of Justice to enhance the process of meeting bail conditions to decongest 244 correctional centres across the country.
This is even as the House worried that Over 70,000 inmates in the country face inadequate facilities despite government efforts; some have not been charged with criminal cases, while some are unable to pay the fines imposed by the courts despite having their cases determined.
The resolution is sequel to the adoption of a motion of urgent national importance, “Call to Decongest Nigerian Correctional Services”, moved by Hon. Chinedu Ogah during plenary at the floor of the house in Abuja.
Leading the motion, Ogah noted that the Nigerian Correctional Service, a federal entity under the Ministry of Interior, is a part of the criminal justice system under exclusive list.
The lawmaker is disturbed that the Nigerian criminal justice system is plagued by flaws, with cases often lingering without resolution for years, thus overcrowding the correctional centres in various geopolitical zones.
“A data system reveals that federal offenders comprise less than 10% of correctional system inmates, leaving over 90% to state offences,” Ogah said.
“Overcrowding of the Correctional facilities has led to a huge revenue drain for successive governments, leading to prison dilapidation, criminalization, and inability to separate awaiting trial inmates from convicted ones,” he said.
The lawmaker informed that the Nigerian prisons were mandated to reform, rehabilitate, and ensure effective reintegration of offenders into society in line with universally accepted standards.
He explained that implementing the criminal justice system and the adoption of non-custodial measures would effectively reduce the overcrowding of national prisons.
After the deliberation on the motion, the House urged security agencies to avoid arbitrary arrests, devise and promote effective reformation, rehabilitation, and reintegration of inmates to utilize its prerogative of mercy to grant amnesty to deserving inmates.
The House charged the Federal and State Governments to provide comprehensive reforms of the country’s correctional system, including modernizing custodial centres, building new facilities, and redesigning the bail system.
The House also proposed a legislation to allocate time for the speedy dispensation of justice and reduce the number of inmates awaiting trial.
They also moved to examine the role of the federal and state governments in the correction of inmates and to propose sustainable, efficient solutions to address the congestion in 244 jails nationwide and the effective implementation of non-custodial measures.
The House, therefore, mandated its Committee on Justice to ensure compliance.
