Towards Realization of Criminal Justice System in Nigeria: The Hope of Common Persons in Society
Published 03/06/2024
Keywords
- Towards,,
- Realization,
- Criminal,
- Justice,
- System
- Hope,
- Common,
- Persons and Society ...More
How to Cite
Abstract
This paper examined the realization of criminal justice system in Nigeria, the hope of common persons. The criminal
justice system helps in addressing such infringements for overall well-being of society. However, the Nigeria criminal
justice system has fundamental defects and flaws as manifest in every process of system from the police, judiciary
and correctional service as it affects common persons. This paper examines the reality of criminal justice system in
Nigeria, the hope of common persons. Marxist theoretical framework is adopted for the study. The study’s
methodology was derived strictly from secondary data, such as official state documents and government reports. The
study found that criminal justice system in Nigeria operates on cash and carry justice as such chasing the common
persons out of justice. Unfortunately, from the police to the judiciary and correctional service, the system operates
strictly on financial inducement (money bags) which common persons cannot afford. The study recommends that, the
National Assembly should make laws that will empower the government to make independent bodies such as
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to strictly oversee or monitor only the activities of criminal
justice system in Nigeria. The primary duty and responsibility of the criminal justice system is to dispense justice in
accordance to the rule of law. However, in practice the criminal justice system determines the guilt nor innocence of
potential suspects, and the allocation of fair and proportional punishment to the offenders.
References
- Ajah, B. O. (2018). Criminal Justice Administration and Panic of Prison Correction in Nigeria; Journal of Law and Judicial System, 1, (2), Pp. 1-8
- Akhihiero, P. A (2018). Arrest, remand and awaiting trial syndrome in criminal justice: fixing the Jigsaw: To end prison congestion. A Paper Presented at the law week of the Ekpoma branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (N.B.A) held at Ekpoma on Friday 27th Day of July. Unpublished work.
- Alemika, E. E. O. (1993a). Colonialism, state and policing in Nigeria. Crime, Law and Social Change 20:187-219. Alemika, E. E. O., & Alemika, E. I. (2005). Penal policy: prison conditions and prisoners’ rights in Nigeria. In B. B. Angwe, and C. J. Dakas, (ed) Readings in human rights. Lagos: Graphic.
- Amnesty International (2008). Nigeria: criminal justice system utterly failing Nigerian people; majority of inmates not convicted of any crime; Report of February 26.
- Attah, A. (2022). Insecurity hampering justice delivery in Nigeria; The Sun, 31st January.
- Box, S. (1987) Recession, crime and punishment. London: Macmillan
- Carson, A. (2014) Prisoners in 2013. New York: U.S. Department of Justice
- Clare, P. K. & Kramer, J. H. (1997). Introduction to American Corrections. Boston, MA. Holbrook Press, Inc Nigeria’s Criminal Justice System Lacks Direction. Daily Trust Newspaper. (September 12, 2013)
- Ejiekwonyilo A. (2023). Supreme Court affirms Akpabio as APC’s Akwa Ibom senatorial candidate; APC had challenged the decision of the Court of Appeal, Abuja, which sacked Mr Akpabio as its candidate for the Akwa Ibom North-West senatorial seat election; Premium Times; January 20.
- Falana, F. (2019). Unequal criminal justice system; Thisday guest columnist: https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2019/06/17/unequal-criminal-justice-system. Fattah, E. (1997) Criminology: Past, present and future. London: Macmillan Gary, D. (2001). Class. Routledge. Pp. 2-10.
- Godon, D. (1991) Resurrecting Marx. New York: Transactional Publishers
- Hills, A. (2000). Policing Africa: internal security and the limits of liberalization. London: Lynne Reiner.
- Igwe, O. I. & Agbor, B. (2021). Review of the impacts of poverty on access to justice in Nigeria; NAUJILJ 12 (2) Pp.187-195.
- Joireman, S. F. (2001). Inherited legal systems and effective rule of law: Africa and the colonial legacy. Journal of Modern African Studies 39(4):571–596.
- Kunle, S. (2022). Special Report: Criminalization of petty offences in Nigeria violates the poor. The enforcement of petty offences laws targets the poor who on many occasions have no resources to hire lawyers or to bribe the police. The Premium Times, Nigeria; 11th October 2022.
- Moses, U. I. (2011). The Nigerian Prison System and the Failure of Rehabilitation: An Examination of Incarceration Alternatives. The Nigerian Academic Forum, 20, (1): Pp.1-8.
- Munir, M. (2018). Marxism, Marxian Theories of Law and Pakistan’s Experience with Socialism; Kardan Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities: Kardan University Kardan Publications Kabul, Afghanistan https://kardan.edu.af/Research/Curren: 1(2) Pp. 28-38
- Njoku, A. (2019). Critical Appraisal of Capital punishment in Nigeria Judicial system' International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention (IJHSSI), 08, (11), Pp. 47-62
- Olonisakin, T.T., Ogunleye, A. & Adebayo, S.O. (2017) The Nigeria criminal justice system and its effectiveness in criminal behaviour control: A socio-p sychological analysis. IOSR Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 22 (2): Pp.33-48
- Olaposi, I (2021). The history and sources of the Nigerian criminal laws: How we ended up with two codes; Legalnaija Jun. 8. http://www.lawhub.com.ng.
- Otu, N. (1999). Colonialism and the criminal justice system in Nigeria. International journal of comparative and applied criminal justice. United State of America: 23; 2, Pp. 293-306.
- Police Act, CAP 19. laws of Federation of Nigeria 1990
- Taylor, I, Walton, P. And Young, J. (1973) The New Criminology: For a social theory of deviance. London: Routledge
- Ukwayi, J. K., & Okpa, J. T. (2017). Critical assessment of Nigeria Criminal Justice System and the Perennial Problem of awaiting trial in Port Harcourt Maximum prison, Rivers State. Global Journal of Social Sciences, 16, Pp.1725.