THE Rivers State Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi, has given pardons to 53 detainees at the Port Harcourt Maximum Correctional Centre who are on trial for various offenses.
The activity is part of the actions planned to start off the state’s fiscal year 2023/2024, as well as an effort to decongest the Maximum Correctional Centre in Port Harcourt.
According to Justice Amadi, the exercise is also in accordance with the provision of Section 34 Sub-section 1 of Rivers State’s Criminal Justice Law and the special provision act of the Laws of the Federation, which empowers the Chief Judge to visit the correctional center to determine the number of inmates in custody, their length of stay, and those deserving of a pardon.
Justice Amadi also used the opportunity to call on the police to be thorough in their investigations before charging a suspect to court saying, “Somebody will steal, and the police will charge them for armed robbery instead of stealing. Sometimes when people recover their stolen property, they are not ready to continue the matter in court”.
Speaking further, he advised the released inmates to be of good conduct.
“I came here for an exercise just to make you better citizens. No one wants you to die, you have learnt something here. Please, I beg you all to leave evil and cultism. As you go back to the village let the change be seen in you, don’t go back to eat your vomit, go back and find something to do: farm, fish or learn hand work.
“Think for yourself, if you are struggling, people will help you when they see ingenuity in you. Change because you may not have a second chance but if not, it might not be business as usual.”
In his remarks, Felix Lawrence, Comptroller of the State Correctional Service, commended the criminal justice system Administration in the State for effectively decongesting the Port-Harcourt Maximum Correctional Service, revealing that when he took office in June, he met over 4,000 inmates, but that number has dropped by a thousand.
The detainees given pardons have been in the correctional facility for five and nine years, respectively, and are awaiting trial as awaiting trial inmates with no information filed against them by the High Court by the Department of Public Prosecution.
