The Ogun State Chief Judge, Justice Olatokunbo Olopade, on Thursday granted pardon to 106 inmates as part of efforts to decongest prisons in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Olopade pardoned the inmates during her three-day tour of prison formations at Ibara and Oba in Abeokuta as well as those in Ilaro, Sagamu and Ijebu-Ode.
NAN reports that 38 inmates were released from Oba prison, 31 in Ibara, 13 in Ilaro, eight in Sagamu, while 16 inmates were set free in Ijebu-Ode prison.
Speaking during the visits, the Ogun Chief Judge said that the pardon was to decongest the prisons across the country in line with the directive of the Attorney-General of the federation.
According to Olopade, state chief judges were directed to visit prison formations within their jurisdictions and release inmates that should not be in custody.
She said that the exercise, which was the second in 2017 legal year, was aimed at decongesting the prisons and release inmates who had been in custody without trial over a long period of time.
According to her, the prolonged detention of most of the inmates is due to negligence on the part of the prosecuting authorities.
“Most of the inmates have been on awaiting adviçe from the DPP for years, and the DPP failed to render legal advice, and issues of missing case files as well as prison officers not producing inmates to court at the appropriate time are responsible for the delay in the judicial process.
“I see no point keeping people here for years without no file or delay in legal advice; it is injustice,” she said.
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