Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina State, on Thursday, inaugurated 14-member committee for monitoring process of Administration of Criminal Justice as part of measures to ensure speedy justice delivery in the state.
Inaugurating the committee, Masari noted that the objective of every legal system is to deliver justice, which is the pillar that upholds decency in civilised human societies.
He reminded members of the committee that justice is the best guarantee for peace, prosperity and good governance.
“There is the urgent need to address the speed of justice delivery by all stakeholders in the justice sector,” he said.
He lamented that the justice delivery system is bedevilled by the problem of delays and inefficiency.
“It was in response to the challenges that the reforms in the justice sector became imperative, hence the signing into law in May 2019, the Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Katsina State,” he said.
According to Masari, the broad objective of the law is to facilitate an efficient and transparent criminal justice delivery which he said would, in turn, induce confidence in the court system.
He said the law had specified the functions of the committee in fast-tracking the process of crime investigation, prosecution and conviction.
Masari added that the law had made adequate provisions on the role of all stakeholders in coordinating, monitoring and assuring timelines of the process from arrest until the conclusion of the trial.
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He also commended the State High Court for establishing community conflict and dispute resolution centres in some parts of the state.
The governor said the initiative was in line with the state government’s resolve to address the lingering security challenges in the state and North-west sub-region.
Masari assured that the state government would continue to support the committee to enable it to perform its responsibilities optimally.
In his remarks, the Committee Chairman, who is also the State Chief Judge, Justice Musa Danladi-Abubakar, assured that a radical revolution would be witnessed in the Administration of Criminal Justice in the state.
“The era of passing blame will be over with the bringing together for the first time all the stakeholders by the law,” he said.
He also assured the governor that the committee members would work assiduously to justify the confidence reposed in them so as to achieve the desired objective.
NAN reports that the committee members include the state Grand Kadi, Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice, Solicitor-General, Police Commissioner, Director DSS, Comptroller, Nigerian Correctional Service, Director, Human Rights, a High Court Judge and Chief Registrar of State High Court.
Others are Chairman of Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Director, Public Prosecution, Ministry of Justice and Director, Legal Aid Council, among others.
(NAN)
