Lawyers have lamented trial delays amid calls for a holistic reform in the Nigerian judiciary.
According to the lawyers, the prolonged and delayed trials of suspects are unhealthy and dangerous for the nation’s judicial system.
Prominent lawyers in the country told LEADERSHIP that confidence in the judiciary will continue to be eroded by prolonged and delayed prosecution of suspects.
Weeks ago, at a meeting with the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Kayode Egbetokun, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, had blamed prison congestion and prolonged trials on poor investigative processes, a lack of thorough case preparation, and delays in prosecution.
Justice Kekere-Ekun urged the police and other sister agencies to complete their investigations before filing charges to prevent cases from being dismissed due to a lack of evidence.
The CJN called for enhanced coordination among the police, the Ministry of Justice and the Judiciary to ensure seamless prosecution of cases.
The CJN further expressed concern over some law enforcement agencies’ non-compliance with court orders, saying such an attitude weakens the justice system’s integrity.
She said the rule of law requires strict adherence to judicial decisions, adding that any disobedience undermines public trust in law enforcement and the judiciary.
A senior advocate of Nigeria, Abdul Balogun, said failure to adhere to the rule of law by practitioners in the justice system is part of the causes of prolonged trials.
According to him, if the problem is not checked as soon as possible, it could cause serious disruption to societal peace and order.
“It’s a time bomb waiting to explode if nothing is done. We can’t pretend that all is well with the country’s judicial system. Some areas need to be looked into, and one of these areas is delayed cases and prolonged trials of suspects.
“Stakeholders should come together and find a way out, in the situation the justice system has found itself. If trials are prolonged, some material elements in the case may be forgotten, affecting justice delivery. Many innocent Nigerians have been sentenced to death or life imprisonment as a result of delayed trials”, he said
A US-based rights activist and founder of the United States Law Group, Mr Emmanuel Ogebe, decried prolonged and delayed trials of suspects, saying some of his clients have been victims of Nigeria’s poor justice delivery system.
He specifically mentioned one of his clients who had been on death row for 10 years until the Supreme Court sealed his fate on March 8, 2025.
According to Ogebe, his client, Sunday Jackson, a student in 2015, was said to have murdered a Fulani herdsman during a misunderstanding.
He said following his prolonged trial, Jackson lost everything, including his wife, his home, his belongings and his house.
Ogebe said, “When the man was in prison, his second daughter was born, and he did not know till I went to see him in prison after seven years. Are we living in a civilised society?
“I was the one who told him that his wife gave birth. He didn’t even know his wife had left. We were looking for his photograph. His uncle said herdsmen had destroyed his house, and therefore, they could not recover his pictures.
“I later called and asked them to ask the ex-wife, and they said the ex-wife had died. So, the man had lost everything already. Even if you release him now after ten years, what will he return to? Now, his life will be taken; this is unacceptable.”
Another lawyer, Suleiman Ale, called on the judiciary’s leadership to urgently find a solution to the problem.
According to him, most of the time, poor, innocent Nigerians are the victims of an inefficient justice system. “The rich can always find a way out to expedite their cases in court, but the poor, who are still struggling to survive, may not have the means to push for the expeditious hearing of their cases”, he said.
LEADERSHIP reports a greater percentage of inmates held in custodial centres are awaiting trials inmates, some of whom spend months and years behind bars due to inefficiencies in the justice administration process.
