Daily Independent Online.
*
Thursday, June 17, 2004.
Nigeria’s criminal procedure law is outdated, says
Uwais
By Lekan Sanni
and Victor
Efeizomor, Lagos
The Chief Justice of the Federation,
Justice Mohammed Uwais on Wednesday described the criminal code and the
criminal procedure laws being implemented by the country’s judicial
system as outdated, having been in existence since 1916 and 1945 respectively
without any review.
Speaking at the third stakeholders’
summit on the reform of the criminal justice system in Lagos State, Uwais regretted
that criminal laws in the country have failed to check criminal activities
because punishment have been found to be inadequate, why such laws have failed
to address social and economic changes in the country.
“This is why crimes and the punishments
provided for them by the criminal code law are now found to be grossly
inadequate to meet the level of our development. Similarly, the procedure
provided by the criminal procedure law entails delay in both prosecution of
offences and trials by courts.
“Presently, the law does not appear
to serve as a deterrent to criminals, it leads to the guilty being acquitted,
the amount prescribed as fine is grossly inadequate and it does not provide for
a reliable alternative to prison sentence in order to avoid prison
congestion,” he said.
The chief justice noted that for the people
to have faith in the judicial system, administration of justice would have to
meet the yearnings of the people with the law serving as a deterrent to
criminals.
Praising the Lagos State for its bold
initiative, Uwais said reforms are critical to the survival of democracy in the
country.
Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in his speech,
noted that the law and the rule of law are the only real hope for the country
and the democratic journey embarked upon in 1999.
Noting that the judiciary is the stopgap
between freedom and dictatorship, the governor said its independence and
ability to perform must be given adequate attention.
He said approval had been given by the
state executive council for the refurbishment, renovation of magistrate courts
as well as the introduction of enhanced welfare package for magistrates.
In his speech, the state Chief Judge,
Justice Fatai Adeyinka, spoke of the commitment of the bench in the state to
ensuring changes in the administration of justice as envisaged by the state
government.
Adeyinka described the state government’s efforts in
the administration of justice as a revolution.
