In 2001, a sad incident happened. Ade Bello (not real names)
was sent to Lagos
to meet with his siblings, due to his mental state which had defiled all known
traditional treatment. Upon his arrival in Lagos, he was struck by a sudden spasm of
mental disorder and he lost his mind, his identity and even knowledge of where
he was headed. As a result of his roaming, some men of the Nigerian Police
apprehended him and charged him for 'wandering'. That was the last his family heard
of him. This is 2015; he is still in prison custody at the Medium Prisons,
Kirikiri, Lagos.
This unfortunate story of Ade underscores the very many
sorry tales of suspects and inmates in the various police cells and prison
custody across the country today. The abuse of the fundamental human rights of
so many Nigerians (especially that of men) have gone on for years with little
or no abatement despite our rich body of laws protecting and speaking directly
to the enforcement of the laws, violations of human rights in the hands of the
security agencies have been appalling. I bet that every person living in Nigeria
does not need a long prose on this abnormal. It’s very pathetic to say the
least.
One of the shocks that greet many is that most lawyers do NOT
want to be associated with criminal matters. They simply do not want to hear
it! The rules of professional ethics guarding the practice of lawyers obligate
legal practitioners to take on all criminal cases, whether the accused is
culpable of the crime or not. Discrimination is strongly frowned at. But what
do you know?
Chapter IV of the 1999 Constitution has extensive provisions
to provide for adequate legal representation for suspects and accused. The
Criminal Code and the newly promulgated Administration of Criminal Justice Act,
2015 also draw strength from the constitution.
Every person who finds himself or herself in any police
drama in Nigeria
is entitled to have his or her own lawyer as soon as possible. Its desirable
that no comment or statement is made to the police at the point of arrest until
the arrested person has secured the services of a lawyer. This is to ensure
that the suspect if properly advised and protected from any infraction, known
or unknown.
Again, what we find is that some family members of some
suspects have the 'fear' of hiring a lawyer when their loved one has been
arrested by the police. The reasons they give are very hilarious and
unfortunate! The police take advantage of this ignorance to demand for all
sorts of monetary inducement, promising to place the arrested person on police
bail. Where the family members are unable to meet with the 'bribe', which are
usually ridiculous and beyond their reach, the suspects are dragged to court on
charges that may shock all concerned. A practice that should stop!
A simple advice at this point is this: get a lawyer involved
as soon as an arrest has been made by the police; and if the charges have been
brought before a court, a lawyer must be briefed. If an accused has been taken
into prison custody, a lawyer must be contacted immediately! It is right to do
this. It is the law!
Let's have a go at another legal gist next time. Have a good
one out there. Cheers!
Alice O. Odibo is a legal practitioner and
the principal partner at Odibo O. A. Co., a firm of legal practitioners &
solicitors. She is a graduate of University
of Benin and has 8 years
experience in corporate and criminal litigation practice. She resides in Lagos. Contact details.
08057474161. aliceodibo@yahoo.com BB:26474A85
2 comments:
NICE SPEECH THE LAW....
The Perception people have about getting Lawyers is quite interesting! The main reason would be cost and the other being that the Lawyer would not be a 419. We had a case once where the Lawyer played us and got away with our money.. so I totally understand why some people would rather avoid the wahala, but all the same, getting a Lawyer is the first step, but how would you know the right Lawyer? Are they things to look out for? And why are they do expensive?
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