United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in Nigeria has expressed concern over the criminal justice system operated in the country.

The Project Coordinator, Support to the Justice sector in Nigeria, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Mrs Uju Agomoh, said that the justice system in Nigeria needed to be improved upon.

She spoke at a restorative justice diversion and mediation in criminal matters training and workshop organised by Prison Fellowship Nigeria in partnership with the Lagos State Government on Tuesday in Lagos.

She recommended that the country should upgrade her justice system by adopting and implementing restorative justice system.

She said, “The criminal justice system in Nigeria do have some challenges but we have noticed certain attempt to address those issues. Part of which is the passage of the Criminal Justice Act in the country. 

We are also looking at intervening in the problem by coordinating programmes as well as building the capacity of justice sector institutions. For instance, this particular programme is actually looking at ways of enhancing the quality of administration of criminal justice.

“We feel that introducing restorative justice will help the victims, the offenders and community involved. We believe that this will also help us to reduce the number of people in prison.”

The Executive Director of Prison Fellowship of Nigeria, Benson Iwuagwu, lamented the delay experienced in the criminal justice of Nigeria.

While narrating his experience in prison ministry over the years, he complained that some inmates while in prison got to stay beyond the period ordinarily attachable to their offences.

Iwuagwu, who doubles as the Coordinator of Lagos Restorative Justice Pilot Project, said, “We feel that people should not be imprisoned unjustly and that we should begin to address the fundamental issue, which we discovered to be our administration of criminal justice.

We feel that the restorative system of justice is very doable and consistent with our African traditional system or dispute resolution.

“After conducting a couple of conferences, we can come out positive to say that restorative justice is something that our system and society needs.

It will decongest the prison and when it comes to criminal adjudication, the victims will have a sense that justice has truly been done when his/her are feelings are considered in resolving such conflict.”

Iwuagwu faulted the current criminal justice system in Nigeria, alleging that it was alien.

He said, “It is rather unfortunate, though not the fault of anybody but the manifestation of our common law system, that we inherited our current criminal justice system from Britain, which has an adversarial nature.

It is not reconciliatory but a winner-takes-all system that aims to keep the king’s peace.