Lagos to review cases of awaiting trial inmates

By Adebisi Onanuga

Reprieve may be on the way for Awaiting Trial Inmates (ATI) at Nigerian Correctional Services (NCS) centres in Lagos as the state government is to review their cases.

The Director, Directorate Citizens’  Rights, Mrs Oluwatoyin Odusanya, disclosed this during a tour of the NCS centre, Ikoyi.

The visit was part of the yearly tour of NCS  centres in the state by the directorate to provide free legal counselling and  representation to inmates particularly, those awaiting trial.

Mrs Odusanya told the inmates of the centre that the state would begin a review of their cases next week.

Mrs Odusanya, who led officers of the Prison Watch Unit of the Directorate to the Ikoyi centre of the NCS, advised the inmates to speak the truth and save the time of the court so that they could  be given lesser punishment.She promised to start looking into each matter from next week.

The Deputy Controller of Ikoyi Correctional Services, Mr Dare Opadeji, pleaded that the directorate should fasttrack the review of cases of the inmates and see to the release of deserving ones.

He said the visit was a relief to the prison yard and that it would give the inmates hope that freedom is knocking.He prayed that the motive behind the visit of the Directorate for Citizens’ Rights would be achieved.

He expressed appreciation to the  on behalf of the prison inmates.

During the visit, the prison inmates were given items, such as, antiseptic disinfectant, air freshener, insecticides, toothbrushes, slippers, hand sanitizers, shaving brooms, harpic, hypo, toilet papers, bathing soap, evaporated milk and facemasks.

The Directorate for Citizens’s Rights, a department in the Ministry of Justice, is responsible for implementing the government policy in providing access to justice, quick and free to all residents of Lagos State via Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR).

The directorate has several units, aimed at ensuring that service is effectively provided to residents of Lagos State.

It include Prison Watch Unit which is one of the units of the Directorate that sees to  prison visitation to ensure that Awaiting Trial Inmates receive legal representation in  collaboration with the Office of the Public Defender (OPD) and the Community Service Unit.

It also has the mandate to ensure that children under the age of 18years are not kept in regular prisons.