By Gistflash News
Aug 11, 2021
The Director-General of the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria ( LACON), Mr Aliyu Abubakar said the sustainability of the Police Duty Solicitors Scheme ( PDSS), would go a long way to minimize human rights abuse in the police stations.
Abubakar made this known on Wednesday, during the PDSS Advisory Committee meeting held at the Council’s headquarters in Abuja.
” If PDSS is sustained, it will go a long way in minimizing the abuse of human rights associated with the way and manner the Nigeria Police arrest, detain and send people to prison for no cause”.
The DG further reiterated that the Scheme had made giant stride across some States of the Federation by putting some lawyers in some of the police stations to render free legal services to arrested indigent persons.
” We have gone far because we have tried especially in the FCT and in other States to have our Legal Aid lawyers, NBA lawyers who are strategic partners covering some of these police stations.
” While in some other States we use NYSC lawyers under their Law Clinic Programme to assist in covering some of these police stations.
” They are always at the police stations as they are part and parcel of the arrest and detention if necessary of supposed offenders,” Abubakar emphasized.
The DG who is also a co-chairman of the committee having highlighted the achievements of the scheme, in addition stated the challenges currently facing it.
” Like every other aspect of our operation, we have seen that because it is pro bono, the issue of getting a lawyer to be able to perform can be difficult, because if you need some finance to run around or transport yourself from one point to another in an attempt to achieve what PDSS is set up to achieve.
“Funding basically has been a challenge, but we are managing especially with resources the Council and also the NBA is giving us in large and big support because they have lawyers who offer pro bono services.
He further said that the scheme was supposed to run on pro bono, that is rendering free legal services to those who could not afford it by LACON.
” Assuming a high powered individual is arrested in our society, before even questioning him, you will see a lot of Senior Advocates of Nigeria going to be part of the interrogation and questioning.
“But in most cases, you have poor Nigerians who are arrested without doing anything. But you know the police has the power to arrest anybody on the mere suspicion of committing one offence or the other.
“So that basic right given to Nigerians to have legal representation even at the point of arrest is a very good idea which the PDSS is set up to achieve,” he said.
In the same vein, another member of the committee, Mr Bulus Atsen, chairman NBA Abuja branch ( Unity Bar), said Force Order 20 was a legal instrument that was made by the police which can bring about accountability in policing.
Stanley Ibe, a representative of OSJI, said the scheme is focused on the police stations ” there used to be a court solicitor’s scheme, ( though I don’t know if it is still in existence), which is suppose to be the one to take up from the police.
“Now even though it is Police Duty Solicitor Scheme, there are lawyers who do that at the police station and still follow up on cases”,.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Scheme which was initiated in 2004 by LACON in partnership with Open Society Justice Initiative ( OSJI) as a project on pre-trial detention and reform of legal aid services in Nigeria.
The pre-trial detention project sought to address the root causes of long pre-trial detention and correctional facilities over-crowding in Nigeria.
The PDSS as a key component of the project is a mechanism which provides for free legal services for suspects and detained persons at police stations on a 24 hours basis.
The PDSS was guided by a Memorandum of Understanding which was signed by the OSJI, LACON and the Nigerian Police Force ( NPF).
In 2006, management of the pre-trial detention project was handed over to the Rights Enforcement and Public Law Centre (REPLACE).
Between 2010 and 2012, REPLACE’s Board approved the adoption of a new programme objective for the PDSS which would result in the translation of the PDSS into a Police Force Order.
The Force Order transformed the PDSS into an administrative policy of the NPF, situated the PDSS within the NPF and would served as a framework for the provision of legal services to suspects and detainees at their first point of contact with the criminal justice process.
On Sept. 20, 2017, the NPF launched the Force Order 20. The Order institutionalizes the PDSS as a robust mechanism for the provision of legal services to all needy persons within the jurisdiction of every Police station in Nigeria.
Force Order 20 establishes an Advisory committee which is charged with ensuring the implementation of its provisions.
Members of the Advisory committee include the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Force CIID, CP Legal of the NPF, LACON.
Others are Open Society Justice Initiative, Nigerian Bar Association, Police Service Commission, National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), National Human Rights Commission ( NHRC), Attorney General of the Federation, National Orientation Agency, Chief Judge of FCT, and REPLACE.
NAN
