Human rights activist and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr Femi Falana, has urged Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo to reconsider his proposal to use N500 million to pay the court costs for 4,000 inmates.
Falana made this plea in a statement titled “Interior Minister Should Review Plan to Pay Fines of N500 Million,” which he signed as the Chairman of the Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond (ASCAB) on Sunday.
He further urged Tunji-Ojo to prioritise the well-being of detainees in correctional facilities across the country rather than using the allocated funds for paying court fines.
“The Minister of Interior, Honourable Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has announced his immediate plan to decongest the correctional centres in the country by ensuring the payment of the fines imposed on not less than 4,000 convicts by various courts in the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory.
Having concluded the arrangement, the Minister disclosed that the total fines of N500 million would be paid within the next four weeks,” the statement reads.
“While the Interior Minister deserves commendation for the initiative, we are compelled to call for a review of the plan.
“The N500 million earmarked for payment of fines should be spent on the welfare of inmates in the correctional centres while alternative decongestion policies are considered.
“Specifically, the Minister should request the President and the various state governors to exercise their prerogative of mercy by granting pardon to the 4,000 convicts on grounds of impecuniosity to facilitate their immediate release from custody.
“It is on record that the federal government released 7,813 inmates from the Nigerian Correctional Centres across the country during the outbreak of COVID-19 to curb the spread of the virus among inmates.
“The convicts and awaiting trial inmates were granted amnesty and released on the orders of former President Muhammadu Buhari as part of the prison decongestion policy of the Federal Government,” he said.
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