Niger CJ threatened to issue bench warrant on head of police legal unit for negligence of duty
BY UTHMAN BABA AL-SIRAJDEEN, MINNA
The Chief Judge Of Niger State Justice Halima Ibrahim Abdulmalik, says has threatened to issue a bench warrant on the head of the Legal unit of the State Criminal investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID),CSP Adama Musa, of the Niger State Police Command for his refusal to be in Minna Correctional Custody.
Justice Halima Ibrahim made the threat at the Minna Medium Security Correctional centre during her ongoing statewide Correctional Facilities visit to decongest the correctional facilities in Minna.
She wondered why the head of the legal unit of the state Police Command was not in the correctional Custody even with the notice of the visit by the Chief Judge to the correctional centre.
” Why is the head of the legal unit not here with us? Is he aware of this visit to this place today? I will not hesitate to issue a bench warrant for his arrest” she threatened.
The Chief Judge threat was against the backdrop of some inmates who have been incarcerated in the Custody for six years without being arraigned in court for proper prosecution by the police.
CSP Adama Musa,it was gathered that resumed office in Minna, as the newly deployed head of the legal unit in the State Command of the SCIID
He replaced CSP Jude Thadeus Akaeze the then head of the legal department who was redeployed to the administration department at the Command headquarters in Minna.
Apparently worried by the Unwholesome and deliberate attitude of the legal department of the state Criminal investigation and IntelligeDepartment (SCIID) the Chief took a swipe against the police legal officer for his refusal to be in the ongoing decongestion exercise.
However, findings at the Minna correctional centre revealed that most of the inmates have been languishing without their Case files being transmitted to the Ministry of Justice for legal advice.
It was also revealed that some of the Case files will be transmitted to the Ministry of Justice by the legal department of the police without duplicated evidence in accordance with the Provision of administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), Niger State 2023.
Findings further revealed that some of the inmates at the correctional Custody their Case files could not be trace to the office of the director of Public Prosecution in the Ministry of Justice even as the police Prosecutors refused to comply with the Provision of the ACJA.
The Director Public Prosecution (DPP) in the Ministry of Justice, Barrister Usman Baba Nuraini told the Chief Judge that his office has been leaving up to its Professional responsibilities by complying with the Provision of the law.
” My Lord. We in the Ministry of Justice have been doing all within the Provision of the law to see that we partner with the police as critical stakeholders in the administration of Justice.
” My Lord. To even ease our lob in the legal department of the SCIID,we bought some reasonable numbers of gadgets for the police but yet they make things very difficult for us to do our work. This is our Predicament in the Ministry of Justice” he told the Chief Judge.
In a swift reaction, Justice Halima Ibrahim Abdulmalik expressed concern with the manner in which the police from the legal unit of the SCIID were not complying with the Provision of the administration Criminal Justice Act (ACJA)
” It is the duty of the Police to comply with the relevant rule of law Particularly the ACJA. For you to tell me here that the Ministry of Justice to follow up on it sound so ridiculous.
” You just have to sit up. Prosecutor has to be done in a professional way and we have to do that very soon” Justice Halima Ibrahim Abdulmalik visibly asserted.
