Bauchi State Chief Judge, Justice Rabi Talatin Umar has set free 31 Awaiting Trial Persons (ATPs) from Bauchi Custodial Centre and other correctional services across the state.
In continuation of her routine quarterly ATPs review cases under the State Committee on Prerogative of Mercy, Justice Rabi charged them to be of good and exemplary conduct upon regaining their freedom.
A breakdown of the correctional service released ATPs showed that 14 persons were set free from the Bauchi Custodial Centre, as 10, 5 and 2 were respectively released from Tafawa Balewa, Ningi and Misau.
Justice Rabi at the Katagum Correctional Service in Zaki LGA, one of the centres she visited, expressed disgust upon seeing young and energetic youths numbering over 100 languishing in jail on civil and criminal offences.
She therefore charged youths in the state to shun divisive tendencies and quick to get rich syndrome which often trapped them in jail, saying there is nothing to hurry in life.
Rabi similarly tasked parents and guardians to lend credence to the proper upbringing of their children who, she pointed out, are leaders of tomorrow, saying they should involve them in skill acquisition and other profitable ventures to fend for a living.
Justice Rabi was however terribly worried at the Bauchi Custodial Centre, having understood that the police lacks proper documentation of case files, and where a case file is traced, you find that it wasn’t updated, and therefore asked prosecutors to brace up to their duties.
The Chief Judge also expressed concern at a situation where case files were being delayed at the Ministry of Justice, stressing that justice delayed is justice denied.
