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ASABA CONFERENCE ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORMS: DAY 1 – Panel Discussants Explore Benefits of ACJA 2015

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ASABA CONFERENCE ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORMS: DAY 1 – Panel Discussants Explore Benefits of ACJA 2015

The sumptuous hospitality that was offered to delegates during the cocktail party at the residence of the Delta State Chief Judge, Hon. Justice Marshall Umokoro, shortly after their arrival in Asaba for the 5th NBA Criminal Justice Reform Conference seemed to have whetted their appetites for an equally robust series of discussions the following day.

NEWSWIRE’s correspondent in the Delta State capital reports that after the colourful opening ceremonies in the main hall of the impressive Asaba Convention Center on Day 1, the conferees eventually settled down to two panel discussions, the first of which was an examination of the provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) of 2015, and ways in which it’s numerous benefits could be deepened. Titled, ‘Unlocking the Innovations of Criminal Justice Legislation,’ the discussion was slated to be chaired by a former president of the Nigerian Bar Association, Joseph B. Daudu, SAN. But in Daudu’s absence, the proceedings were directed by another Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Niyi Akintola.

The lead speaker, Prof. Deji Adekunle, SAN, who is the current director-general of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, called on legal practitioners to jettison their individual and collective egos and focus more on the interest of the nation as far as criminal justice legislation is concerned, adding that the success of ACJA 2015 would depend on two crucial elements – political will on the part of key stakeholders, and finance (i. e. adequate funding to actualize the legislation’s objectives as regards relief for the victims of crime as well as accused persons).

Prof. Adekunle was joined on the panel by two other senior advocates, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN and Ntufam Mba Ukweni, SAN, as well as the respective representatives of former NBA president Chief Okey Wali, SAN, and Fola Arthur-Worrey.

While Prince Fagbemi, SAN based his submission on the need to insist on due process, deter impunity and wanton disobedience of court orders (especially by state actors) and the urgent need to reform holding charges and remand procedures, Ntufam Ukweni, SAN spoke on the imperative of insisting on full implementation of ACJA’s provisions – especially in the face of resistance by judges still wedded to old habits and anachronistic legal procedures. Many of these provisions, he said, were not exactly novel but have been given greater impetus by ACJA 2015 – such as the electronic recording of confessional statements by accused persons. In her contribution, Chief Okey Wali’s representative (identified simply as Nonye) highlighted the issue of women taking accused persons on bail; the need to encourage ‘non-custodial sentencing’ by Judges as a way to decongest our prisons; as well as the need to lay greater emphasis on reformation and corrective in our penal system, rather than punishment and retribution. She also called on stakeholders to explore the benefits of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms.

In the question-and-answer session that followed, a number of participants voiced their concerns in the following areas: plea-bargaining; the practice of having multiple charges in several courts; appealing the granting of bail applications by lower courts at courts of higher jurisdiction; the exemption of courts-martial (of military personnel) in the Evidence Act; and the legality or otherwise of having legal counsel present during police interrogations of accused persons, among others.

The second panel discussion of Day 1 was chaired by no other than the Delta State Chief Judge, Hon. Justice M. Umukoro. Titled, ‘Arrest, Remand and Awaiting-Trial Syndrome in Criminal Justice: Fixing the Jigsaw to End Prison Congestion,’ the session featured quite a sizable panel made up of high-profile players in various areas of law formulation and enforcement, such as Mr. David Igbodo, a commissioner of police who represented the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris; Mr. Suraj Olarinde, an assistant comptroller of prisons; the Delta State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Hon. Peter Mrakpor; Sylvester Imhanobe, Esq; Dr. Uju Agomoh, the Executive Director of PRAWA (an advocacy group for prison reform in Nigeria), as well as the respective representatives of the Attorney-General of Rivers State, Emmanuel Aguma, SAN, the Director-General of the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, Dr. Joy Bob-Manuel, and Prof. Nathaniel Inegbedion, dean of the faculty of law, University of Benin.

NEWSWIRE’s correspondent reports that, like their counterparts in the first discussion panel, the discussants (in some rather animated submissions) also harped on the need to improve funding for the police – especially in the areas of logistics, infrastructure and logistics for forensic investigation; the need for funding for the Nigerian Prisons Service; reform of our remand procedures, non-custodial sentencing and the enhancement of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, among others.

The question-and-answer sessions were no less animated, as a number of participants wanted answers as regards a number of issues, such as the controversies surrounding the police Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS); the reported daily feeding expenditure of N14,000 per prisoner (as reported in several media outlets; the actual figure, says Mr. Olarinde, is just N450 per day, minus the contractors’ markup); the practice of jailing people even for land disputes, as has happened in some jurisdictions in Lagos State, for example; among others.

The session chairman’s summation of all the contributions and their responses to the questions from the floor brought the second panel discussion, and a long but eventful opening day, to an end, as participants took a belated lunch and networked in anticipation of Day 2 of the 5th NBA Criminal Justice Reforms Conference.

See photos below:

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