FG Moves to Enhance Justice Delivery, Launches Court Duty Solicitor Scheme

Alex Enumah in Abuja

As part of efforts at implementing the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015, the federal government on Monday, launched the Court Duty Solicitor Scheme (CDSS), targeted at offering free legal services to indigent Nigerians.

The Executive Secretary of the Administration of Criminal Justice Monitoring Committee (ACJMC), Mr. Sulayman Dawodu, speaking at the launch in Abuja, stated that the scheme will ensure speedy trials, decongest detention facilities in the country, as well as reduce the dockets of judges across the country.

Dawodu said his committee started with the Police Station Duty Solicitor Scheme (PDSS) in January, this year, in about 16 Police Divisions in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) by, “placing lawyers in police stations to render legal services to indigents and those who don’t have legal representatives to go through their interviews, secure bails and to ensure their welfare and protection of their rights”.

He however noted that the committee is also worried about suspects that are charged to court with no lawyers to represent them.

Dawodu said: “We were concerned and wanted to fill in that gap to ensure that those charged to court also have legal representation at their first appearance. We believe that will obliterate the necessity of remanding in custody of people who are not able to get bail, to have someone with a legal voice to speak for them and applied for their bail.”

He added that the scheme will help suspects on how to plead at arraignment and will help those that pleaded guilty during sentencing by the court, explaining however that, Court Duty lawyers will not be involved in full blown trials of suspects.

The ACJMC boss maintained that the Court Duty lawyers are qualified, well trained and are also carefully selected to show that they are passionate with what they are doing and ready to abide with the committee’s Code of Conduct and the Rules of Professional Conduct.

A lawyer, Uche Nwora, who is involved in the scheme, told journalists that himself, along with other lawyers had handled close to 50 cases, securing bail for suspects charged to court.

He explained that some people are brought to the Magistrate or Upper Area courts confused by either the ICPC or the EFCC and “when we got to know of it, we moved in there to represent them in filing application for their bail and sometimes, negotiate for their administrative bail with the authorities on behalf of the suspects who are not represented by a lawyer”.

Highlights of the events include the unveiling of the ACJMC bi-monthly newsletter and goodwill messages from representatives of the Chief Judge of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Justice Hussaini Baba-Yusuf, and the Director General of the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, Mr Aliyu Bagudu Abubakar.