Abuja- Some Abuja-based lawyers have expressed divergent views on the adoption of “non-custodial sentencing’’ in the country’s legal system.
While some told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in separate interviews that Nigeria was not yet ripe for non-custodial form of sentencing, others expressed support for it.
They told NAN that Nigerians would frustrate it by not carrying out the punishment.
Mr Festus Osimhen, a lawyer, told NAN that Nigeria as a country was not legally matured to adopt non- custodial sentencing for convicts.
Osimhen said that adopting a non-custodial penalty for some offences was not what the country needed now, adding that “we should get our legal system right and make it to work.
“ Everyone should put their hands on deck and lets all work on getting it right and making the judiciary the last hope of the common man.
He said “the idea of introducing non-custodial sentencing is a good one but some offenders are likely to frustrate it.
“My opinion is that those charged with and found guilty should all be sentenced to prison,’’ Osimhen said.
But, Mr Mahmoud Ismail, expressed support for it and suggested that an agency or a department in the Nigerian Prison Service should supervise the non-custodial penalty.
Ismail said non-custodial sentencing would help in dealing with the vexed issue of prison congestion.
“Non- custodial sentencing will go a long way to decongest some of our prisons.
“The government can also help in implementing it by amending some of our laws and punishments for some offences such as theft, receiving stolen property, attempt to commit an offence of theft and similar offences,’’ Ismail suggested.
He also urged the government to also open training centres where offenders could be rehabilitated while serving their non-custodial sentence.
Another lawyer, Mr Ifeanyi Moses, corroborated Ismail’s views, contending that the country was long overdue for alternate form of prison sentence.
According to him, non-custodial system should be used besides incarceration to address the issue of prison congestion.
“Prison should be reserved for those offenders who cannot be dealt with in any other form and are too high risk for community-based sentencing.
“Community sentence will also make offenders known to the community,’’ Moses said.
Similarly, Mrs Esther Uzoma, a lawyer and activist, said that non-custodial sentence for minor offences would forestall the incessant jailbreak experienced in the country.
Uzoma commended the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015 which made provisions for the use of non-custodial sentence.
She reasoned that it would be wrong to clamp hardened criminals with minor offences, stressing that instead of reforming the minor offenders it would toughen them
But, Mr Jude Kaleijaye, criticised the system, saying “Nigerians will not take it seriously and it will not serve as a deterrent to other offenders’’.
According to him, hoodlums are naturally shameless and may not see the punishment as discipline.
“The truth is that Nigerians are hard. Community service will not shake them at all,” Kaleijaye said.
