FCT Chief Judge Frees 30 Awaiting Trial Inmates in Keffi Prison
Justice Husseini Baba-Yusuf, Chief Judge of the FCT High Court, has ordered the release of 30 awaiting trial inmates from Keffi custodial centres in Nasarawa State during a visit facilitated by the Public and Private Development Centre (PPDC).
Of the 30 discharged, 24 were from the Keffi Medium Security Custodial Centre, while 6 women were freed from the Keffi Old Medium Security Custodial Centre. Justice Baba-Yusuf emphasized that the visit aimed to release individuals unjustly detained, saying, “There are a lot of people who shouldn’t be here in the first place.”
He blamed poor logistics, laxity from magistrates, and irregular court appearances for the congestion in correctional facilities. He also pledged similar visits to Kuje and Suleja centres to continue the decongestion effort.
PPDC CEO Lucy Abagi and FIDA Chairperson Chioma Onyenucheya-Uko both decried the unjust incarceration of vulnerable women, some of whom were held for months simply for resisting abuse or unable to pay bail as low as N20,000. They urged other Chief Judges to replicate such interventions across the country.
