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“Out of about 40,000 inmates in 227 prisons nation wide, about 25,000 are awaiting trial. The other 15,000 inmates are convicts”.
Mr. Abraham Akpe Controller General, Nigerian Prison Service Guardian Newspaper Tuesday August 3 2004.
The rights
of prisoners is a professional charity (legal) whose focus is the provision of pro-bono legal representation for awaiting
trial prisoners as well as the improvement of the Nigerian Criminal Justice System. It intends to achieve this through Advocacy,
Judicial Pronouncement, Research Publication and Ultimately Legislation.
Our Mission
The Criminal Justice System in Nigeria like in the rest of the Commonwealth and in the United states is accusatorial, which
implies that the accused person is presumed innocent until proved otherwise in a competent court, until his case is so proved,
he deserves to be treated as humanely as possible, having access to his lawyer and speedy trial. These requirements usually
taken for granted in the developed world are sadly absent in Nigeria. Instead the “innocent accused” is subjected to:-
(1) Long
period of waiting before trial, sometimes as long as ten years. This may be for a number of reasons, which may include the
absence of a legal representative to pursue the case file in the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution.
(2) Deplorable
living conditions in the cell, this is because not being convicted prisoners, they are not provided with food, clothing and
medical facilities.
(3) The prison cell where they are kept are also overcrowded where as many as 20 person awaiting
trial are put in an 8ft x 12ft. room.
(4) A properly articulated improvement in the law and practice as it relates
to arraignment, bail and sentencing particularly at summary trials can reduce the number of awaiting trial prisoners as well
as discourage corruption by public officers.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
The aim of R.O.P in simple language is
to redefine, improve and modernize the Nigerian criminal justice system to the extent of achieving speedy trial
of cases particularly for those awaiting trial. It is also expected to improve modes of arrest, detention, trial,
conviction and sentencing of felons and the working environments of judicial officers and law enforcement agents.
While providing a pro-bono legal services to awaiting trial prisoners.
MEETING THE CRITERIA
The Right of Prisoners
is a professional charity duly registered as such under part ‘C’ of the companies and allied matter Act CAP 59 Laws of the
Federation of Nigeria 1990. It runs a secretariat at No 36 Zik Avenue Uwani Enugu with a full compliment of staff including
experienced professionals (legal) and is financed by donations and gifts.
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Organization News
THE PROJECT
(1) Pro-bono legal work and representation for prisoners awaiting trial.
(2) Seminar for Nigerian
judicial officers of inferior courts also known as magistrates on law and practice as it relates to arraignment, bail and
sentencing particularly at summary trials.
(3) Research on alternative sentencing to decongest the prisons particularly
with respect to awaiting trial prisoners.
Number one above is the priority project known simply as ‘SPONSOR A PRISONER’.
It is arranged this way to enable a sponsor do so on a prisoner by prisoner basis. Sponsored at the rate of £100 sterling
per prisoner/file, a report of each completed file will be sent to the sponsor.
IFEANYI UDENZE LLB
(TRUSTEE)
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