14 Awaiting Trial Inmates Regain Freedom In Bauchi
By Sule Aliyu Bauchi
Bauchi State Chief Judge, Justice Rabi Talatin Umar has set free 14 Awaiting Trial Persons (ATPs) from Bauchi Custodial Centre and other correctional services across the state.
In continuation of her routine quarterly ATPs review cases under the Administration of Justice Committee, Justice Rabi urged the released inmates to be of good behavior and turn a new leaf devoid of crime.
The Chief Judge, expressed displeasure with the nonchalant attitude of some judges particularly during her cases review exercise across the correctional centres in the state.
Justice Rabi Talatu Umar warned that she would henceforth take drastic action against any judge who absent himself/ herself during her committee’s cases review of long awaiting inmates at any of the designated correctional centres in the state.
The Administration of Justice Committee led by the State Chief Judge, Justice Rabi Talatu Umar has during its two-day 2026 first quarterly inmates cases review exercise which ended the preceding week, had a poor turnout of judges at Misau, Azare and Jama’are correctional centres, rating less than 30 percent attendance.
The presence of the judges and magistrates during the exercise graciously helped in highlighting cases and giving additional information on the inmates thereby facilitating the smooth conduct of the exercise of justice dispensation
Justice Rabi Umar therefore directed the representative of the State Grand Khadi on the Administration of Justice Committee which she was heading to compile list of absentees judges during the exercise with a directive to be in her office Monday for further action.
The Chief Judge has during the exercise released a number of 14 awaiting trial inmates, one at Jama’are and 13 at Bauchi Custodial Centre that have spent more than three, and about five years awaiting trial.
Among the released persons included the sick, mentally retarded, as well as those whose case files could not easily be traced during the review exercise.
Addressing the inmates at the Bauchi Custodial Centre shortly after their release, Magistrate Safiya Musa reminded them about the next judgment by the Creator in the hereafter.
Magistrate Safiya Musa stated, “You are lucky to have the Allah’s booty of your release in this Blessed Month of the Ramadan fast. No sooner have you rejoin your family, you have to spiritually consider that it’s an Act of God that made your release possible”.
She added, “It is not just you are absolve of any blame or unbecoming, but the Chief Judge finds it expedient to release you, for God is the best knower of everything. What’s in your minds are best known to Allah, so you should repent and seek God’s forgiveness”.
Magistrate Musa then commended Justice Umar and the Administration of Criminal Justice Monitoring Committee (ACJMC) for their role in decongesting facilities, noting that the two-day exercise would promote timely justice delivery
Also speaking, the state vice chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Dr. A. G Haruna (Esq) asked the released inmates to henceforth guard against their utterances, and seek God’s forgiveness for the sins they were perceived to have committed.
He explained that committing an offence or atrocity by any human being, either of two things could happen to such a person, which are to either be a source of pardon by Allah or getting God’s punishment for not seeking His forgiveness.
“Having a person to find himself in jail, even though he didn’t commit any offence, such incarceration may attract God’s mercy for him to be rewarded with fame, as it happened to one of the Prophets of Allah”, Barrister Haruna said.
One of the freed inmates, Sani Sale, on behalf of his colleagues, thanked the committee and the chief judge in particular for their freedom, saying, “We are very grateful to God and the committee for its magnanimity to let us go free.”
The exercise is part of the ongoing efforts to decongest the correctional facilities across the state, and promote timely administration of justice
