Aliyu Bagudu Abubakar, the Director General of the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, said out of the total inmate population of 70,000 in Nigeria, approximately 66,000, constituting 73 per cent, are awaiting trials in the country’s custodial centres.
He said this on Wednesday in Abuja at the ‘Access to Justice Pro Bono Conference 2024’, 3-day training for pro bono lawyers and law clinicians on the Reforming Pretrial Detention in Nigeria Projects (RPDNII), organised by the Public Private Development Centre (PPDC).
Abubakar said the issue of overcrowding in custodial centres stems from two main factors: inadequate facilities and the remand system’s detention of individuals for minor offences.
He stressed that the correctional centres, designed for a certain capacity, often end up accommodating double their intended capacity, exacerbating the problem of overcrowding.
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Addressing efforts to tackle the issue, Abubakar outlined ongoing initiatives aimed at improving the efficiency of the justice system, including investigations, arrests, and prosecution processes.
He expressed optimism that with sustained efforts, the congestion in the system would be alleviated, gradually reducing the number of awaiting trial inmates.
