Justice Inumidun Akande, the Chief Judge of Lagos State on Monday freed 22 awaiting-trial inmates of the Kirikiri Medium and Female Security Prisons in Lagos.
The freed inmates included 19 males and three females. They had been in custody for periods longer than they would have served if convicted of their alleged offences.
The gesture was part of activities to mark the 2010 Annual Law Week of the Nigerian Bar Association Ikorodu Branch.
Akande stated that it was aimed at decongesting the prisons in order to alleviate the plight of the inmates.
She said some of the inmates were remanded in prison custody for minor offences and could not meet their bail conditions.
The chief judge noted that so long that they are in prison, all the facilities provided for convicted ones who have committed serious offences will be shared with those awaiting trial who ought not to be in prison for a long time.
Akande also stressed the need for the amendment of some provisions of the law in order to remove stringent bail conditions for minor offences.
Also speaking, Deputy Controller of Prisons, Aremu Tajudeen disclosed that the prison had 1945 awaiting trial males and 98 convicts making a total of 2043 inmates.
Tajudeen said this is a self-explanatory situation of what obtains in our justice administration system and I hope this visit will help in reducing this ugly trend.
Kazeem Adebanjo, Chairman, NBA, Ikorodu branch also called for the liberalisation of bail conditions which at present had been working against justice.
One of the freed inmates, Taiwo Kayode an Odua People’s Congress member still in his early thirties was arrested for possession of a dane-gun and had been in custody for six years awaiting trial.
The release is pursuant to the provisions of Section 1(1) of the Criminal Justice Release from Custody Special Provision Act CAP C40, 2004, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria which empowers the chief judge to grant freedom to inmates.
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