Ken Okeke
| The Economic Community of West African States Court of Justice has advised Nigeria to reform its criminal justice and correctional systems. The Court has ruled that Nigeria is guilty of holding persons in custody for long and its findings show that thousands of awaiting-trial inmates are being held for prolonged periods in overcrowded prisons under inhumane conditions. |
| Delivering judgment, the regional court held that the continued detention of inmates without trial violated their rights to liberty, dignity, fair hearing and presumption of innocence under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. |
| The suit was filed by the Centre for Community Law which accused Nigeria of operating a correctional system where many detainees spend years in custody over minor and bailable offences. |
| According to figures presented before the court, Nigeria’s correctional centres held 79,237 inmates in 2024, out of which 52,519 were awaiting trial, representing nearly 66% of the prison population, while only 26,718 inmates had been convicted. |
| Meanwhile the Federal Government argued that the detention of inmates was lawful and maintained that correctional facilities had rehabilitation and reintegration programmes. |
| Government lawyers also challenged the legal standing of the NGO and described the claims as speculative and lacking merit. |
| However, the three-member panel held that the organisation had the legal right to institute the suit in the public interest under the doctrine of actio popularis. |
| The court added that the evidence presented, including official records and public admissions by correctional authorities, remained credible and largely unchallenged by the Nigerian government. |
| The Court ruled that Nigeria violated Articles 1, 3, 5, 6 and 7 of the African Charter through systemic prolonged pre-trial detention and overcrowded prison conditions. |
| It directed the Federal Government to establish mechanisms for periodic judicial review of prolonged detention cases and implement a comprehensive prison decongestion policy, including non-custodial measures for minor and bailable offences. |
| The Court also ordered Nigeria to submit a compliance report within six months, including updated statistics on inmates released or tried. |
| The judgment was delivered by a panel led by Justice Ricardo Cláudio Monteiro Gonçalves alongside Justice Sengu Mohamed Koroma and Justice Edward Amoako Asante. |