As part of its array of projects, Headfort foundation a non-governmental organization in a piece of recent information has called on the federal government of Nigeria to Decongest correctional facilities across the country by ensuring a fast Justice process.
The Chief Executive Officer Headfort Foundation, Barr. Oluyemi Orija made the call at the human right sensitization program at the Special Correctional Center for girls in Idiaraba, Lagos.
According to her, the Headfort foundation is mandated to give free access to justice to vulnerable people in society especially people in prison.
“We give free access to justice to vulnerable people in our society especially people in prison, we give them free legal representation and since inception in 2009 we have helped 326 persons out of prison. In our experience doing that we realized that a lot of Nigerians, the educated and non-educated ones really do not understand what that rights are and importantly how to enforce it should those right be infringed upon’.
However, speaking on the importance of the sensitization programme across the country, Orija said “instead of just representing and taking them out of prison with ignorance in them, it is also essential for us to educate them on their fundamental human right, this in turn will help them to prevent crime”.
“And eventually reduce the number of persons we have in our correctional centers; we have sensitized the girls in idiaraba based on our ‘My Right My Freedom’ handbook published in March 2022, an extract of the Nigerian constitution (Chapter 4) which talks about the fundamental Human rights with simple English, then we translated it into the three basic Nigerian indigenous Languages; Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo”.
She hinted that the project will be executed across the 774 local government of Nigeria, to sensitize the people on their fundamental human right and how to enforce it.
“We have done five, the project was launched in march, we’ve done two in Lagos and Rivers state, including the one we are doing currently in Idiaraba, so before the end of September we will do another one in Lagos Island, aside the staff capacity we have over 200 volunteers across the country”.
Meanwhile, addressing the issue of congestion the Nigeria Correctional facilities, Barr. Orija emphasizes on Legal aid for the children that does not have lawyers to represent them in court.
“After our sensitization, we are also doing legal aid, this is where our lawyers present here will be taking up there cases up, the ones that does not have lawyers to represent them in court for free and that is we providing justice to them”
She therefore encourages the government to step up the maintenance of the correctional facilities in the country, both juvenile and adult facilities.
