The Minister of the Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Muhammad Musa Bello has announced the settlement of court fines for 114 prison inmates to gain their freedom.
The minister, announced this today, Thursday when the Presidential Committee on Prison De-congestion visited the Kuje Medium Security to review cases of inmates who have either been fined but could not pay the stipulated fines or have stayed beyond the terms which their offenses could have attracted by law.
The Minister, who was represented at the event by the FCT permanent secretary, Christian Chinyaka Oha, said that the gesture was part of efforts to de-congest the prisons and assist the freed inmates to reintegrate back into the society.
According to him, the FCT Administration will continue to partner with Presidential Committee to identify and support indigent inmates who do not have the means to pay the court fines.
He said that the administration has been partnering with the Nigerian Prison Service to design and build new prison facilities in the Territory, adding that about 36.3 hectares of land had been provided for the building of a new prison in Abuja.
Muhammad Bello said that locations have been identified in the six area councils to build correctional centres for youths and that the centres would be dedicated solely for underage inmates rather than putting them together with high profile criminals in prisons.
Earlier, the FCT Chief Judge, Justice Ishaq Bello commended the Minister for the establishment of a standard family as well as children and young person’s Court in the FCT.
He noted that the facility which is the first of its kind in the country, is expected to be completed by the end of 2018.
He said that the two courts will go a long way in addressing various cases involving young persons who presently have to be taken to open courts where adults are arraigned.
Justice Bello expressed the gratitude of the FCT Judiciary to the minister for the numerous interventions made to ensure improvements in the judicial system and speedy justice delivery. [myad]
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