The judiciary?s failure to enforce the mandatory monthly inspection of police detention centres as provided by the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015 has encouraged the unlawful detention of poor citizens, deepening injustice and systemic inequality in the country?s criminal justice system, AMEH OCHOJILA reports.

The failure of Nigeria?s judiciary to rigorously enforce its statutory duty to inspect police detention centres is more than a mere procedural lapse ? it is a fundamental breach of justice that perpetuates systemic inequality and fuels the unlawful detention of the nation?s poorest citizens.

The Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015 explicitly mandates that chief magistrates or designated judges conduct monthly visits to police detention facilities. This is not a peripheral task, but a core judicial responsibility designed to prevent abuse of power, unlawful detention, and the erosion of constitutional rights. Yet, despite the clarity of the law, this obligation remains widely ignored, with devastating consequences for indigent detainees who are trapped in a nightmarish legal limbo.

At the heart of the issue is a judiciary that appears more passive than proactive in guarding the rights of detainees. The monthly inspection requirement under Section 34(1) of the ACJA is a critical mechanism aimed at dismantling the culture of impunity that has taken root within the police and criminal justice system. When judicial officers fail to conduct these inspections, they effectively abdicate their role as watchdogs, allowing police authorities to detain individuals indefinitely without charge or trial. The vulnerable poor, often young, unemployed, or socially marginalised, bear the brunt of this failure.

For them, detention is punishment before any formal determination of guilt, often in overcrowded, unsanitary cells, without access to lawyers or meaningful judicial intervention. This judicial inertia widens the already yawning chasm between the rich and the poor in the criminal justice system. Those with resources secure bail, hire competent legal counsel, and navigate the system with relative ease.

Meanwhile, the indigent remain invisible, forgotten within police lock-ups, their plight unmonitored and unchallenged. The judiciary?s neglect transforms what should be temporary detention into prolonged suffering. The result is a two-tier justice system, not based on fairness or law but on socio-economic status. This system is fundamentally at odds with the constitutional guarantees of equality and due process.

Common justifications for this judicial silence, such as lack of funding, understaffing, security concerns, and logistical challenges, fail to withstand scrutiny. These are, at best, symptoms of deeper institutional weaknesses and, at worst, excuses for neglect. The judiciary, as the interpreter and enforcer of the law, must rise above bureaucratic hurdles and confront these challenges head-on. To do otherwise is to sanction a status quo where law enforcement agencies operate unchecked, sometimes wielding detention as a tool of intimidation or extortion rather than justice.

Civil society organisations have historically played a vital role in challenging police brutality and unlawful detention in Nigeria. Groups like the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), Access to Justice, and Prisoners? Rehabilitation and Welfare Action (PRAWA) have been instrumental in advocating for detainees? rights, monitoring police abuses, and pushing for reform. Yet, when it comes to the enforcement of Section 34(1), their activism has been intermittent and limited in scope.

Despite running prison decongestion programmes and providing legal aid, these groups have not consistently pressed the judiciary for accountability or demanded transparency through mechanisms such as Freedom of Information requests or strategic litigation aimed directly at compelling judicial inspections.

This absence of sustained civil society pressure has left a vacuum. The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), as the leading professional legal body in Nigeria, also bears responsibility. While individual NBA branches occasionally conduct prison visits or issue statements condemning unlawful detention, these actions are often symbolic, tied to yearly Law Week celebrations or special events, rather than part of a strategic campaign for judicial compliance.

The NBA has not established a dedicated committee or systemic monitoring framework to hold magistrates accountable for their statutory duties under the ACJA. More so, the failure to empower young lawyers and legal aid clinics to escalate non-compliance through formal complaints or litigation represents a significant missed opportunity.

Without rigorous judicial oversight, police officers enjoy a wide berth to detain suspects indefinitely, often relying on vague pretexts like ?awaiting investigation? or ?orders from above.? Such indefinite detention contravenes fundamental human rights protected by the Nigerian Constitution and international instruments such as the African Charter on Human and Peoples? Rights. This legal black hole disproportionately engulfs poor Nigerians who lack the means to challenge their detention or secure bail, entrenching cycles of poverty, stigma, and exclusion.

However, the problem is not insurmountable. Omale Anonye, a lawyer, has laid out cogent strategies for compelling the judiciary to fulfill Its obligations. According to him, public interest litigation targeting chief judges or designated magistrates can force compliance through judicial review and mandamus orders, compelling the designation of inspectors and the submission of reports.

Again, the Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, he said, can shine a light on the opaque processes surrounding detention inspections, while refusal to comply with such requests can itself become a basis for legal action.

?Collaboration with statutory bodies like the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the Legal Aid Council could amplify pressure on the judiciary by institutionalising monitoring, investigation, and public reporting. Petitions to the National Judicial Council (NJC) could trigger disciplinary sanctions against negligent judicial officers, thereby sending a clear message that dereliction of duty will not be tolerated. Legislative oversight through parliamentary committees and public hearings could further compel accountability from judicial and police authorities alike.

?Another vital dimension is strategic media advocacy that humanises the suffering of unlawful detainees and holds the judiciary publicly accountable. Narratives grounded in the lived realities of detainees can galvanise public opinion and drive political will for reform, transforming abstract legal principles into urgent social imperatives.

?Yet, these strategies will only succeed if supported by institutional reforms within the judiciary. The creation of dedicated monitoring units responsible for overseeing ACJA implementation, incorporating compliance into judicial performance evaluations, and providing targeted training for magistrates and judges on their inspection powers would professionalise and prioritise this critical function,? he suggested.

He further stated that budgetary provisions must be made to cover transportation and logistics for inspections, eliminating the perennial excuse of lack of resources.

Ajonye, who also added that the NBA?s collaboration with the judiciary such as accompanying magistrates to detention facilities should be expanded nationwide, emphasised that Section 34(1) of the ACJA 2015 imposes a clear, mandatory duty on chief magistrates or designated judges to conduct monthly inspections of police detention facilities, aimed at preventing unlawful detention and protecting vulnerable suspects.

He added that collaborating with bodies like the National Human Rights Commission and Legal Aid Council to investigate and publicly report on compliance, petitioning the National Judicial Council to sanction negligent judicial officers, leveraging legislative oversight through parliamentary hearings, and employing strategic media advocacy to raise public awareness and pressure are required.

He argued that despite the law, compliance remains inconsistent with many judicial officers citing a lack of resources or willpower, while some states like Lagos and the Federal Capital Territory show limited progress. Even where inspections occur, he noted, reports seldom lead to meaningful improvements or accountability.

Ajonye recommends institutional reforms, including creating dedicated judiciary monitoring units, integrating ACJA compliance into judicial performance evaluations, training magistrates and judges on their inspection powers, and engaging bar associations and legal clinics to support enforcement. The judiciary?s duty under Section 34(1), he stressed, is not optional, and only through combined legal action, accountability measures, civil society oversight, and institutional strengthening can the rights of detainees, particularly the indigent, be effectively safeguarded.

Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, believed the judiciary is enabling the unlawful detention of indigent citizens by failing to enforce statutory inspection of detention facilities. Falana accused judges and chief magistrates of neglecting the mandatory monthly visits to police stations and other detention centres as provided under Section 34 of the ACJA, 2015.

According to Falana, the judiciary?s inaction has made the poor more vulnerable to arbitrary arrests, torture, and prolonged detention, while the wealthy, who can afford legal representation can protect their rights.

?From the foregoing, it is crystal clear that visiting chief magistrates and judges are empowered to order the release of detainees, or grant them bail or direct that they be arraigned in court,? Falana stated. He lamented that ?since the Act was enacted in May 2015, chief magistrates and judges have failed to enforce the provisions of Section 34 of ACJA by visiting all police stations and other detention facilities at least once a month,? he said.

Falana further recalled that the Chief Justice of Nigeria had, in 2018, directed state chief judges to implement the inspection mandate. However, he noted that compliance has been minimal.

He also criticised the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), saying its Human Rights Committees in 130 branches across the country have failed to ensure that judicial officers perform their oversight functions. ?But despite the clear provisions of the ACJA and Police Establishment Act, Chief Magistrates and Judges have failed to conduct monthly visits to police stations and other detention facilities in the country. Hence, the incessant arrest, detention and torture of poor citizens by the Police and other security agencies have since become the order of the day,? he lamented.

But Bayo Akindele, a lawyer, said the judiciary has neglected this mandate largely due to lack of budgetary planning and inadequate manpower. This institutional neglect, he said, must be addressed holistically through political commitment, resource allocation, and proactive engagement from all justice sector stakeholders.

The judiciary?s failure to inspect detention centres as required by law, he noted, is not a mere procedural oversight, but a breach of constitutional duty with profound human consequences. ?It allows unlawful detention to fester, disproportionately punishing the poor and eroding the legitimacy of the justice system. Without urgent, coordinated action spanning strategic litigation, civil society advocacy, judicial reforms, legislative oversight, and public accountability, the promise of justice for vulnerable Nigerians will remain a distant ideal.

?This crisis reflects a broader systemic malaise, where the machinery of justice fails to serve those who need it most. Until the judiciary confronts and rectifies its silent abdication, the poorest detainees will continue to languish unseen, their rights trampled underfoot by an indifferent system. In the end, the true measure of justice in Nigeria will be how it protects its most vulnerable, and in this regard, much remains to be done,? he said. (The Guardian)

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