…Say Action Will Reduce Traffic, Environmental Offences
Frontline rights activist and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mr.
Femi Falana has lauded the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode
for taking the bold initiative to inaugurate the Special Offences
(Mobile) Court to summarily deal with growing cases of traffic and
environmental abuses in the State.
The Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr.
Adeniji Kazeem had stated during the inauguration of the Mobile Court,
that the development was one of the ways through which Governor Ambode
aims to broaden the pathway that guaranty citizens’ access to justice
and at the same time ensure the preservation of civility in the society.
Speaking to reporters shortly after the inauguration, Falana said the
action of the Governor was a progressive development which would enforce
discipline and sanity on Lagos roads, as well as the environment.
According to Falana, “It is a progressive development. I have just
advised the Attorney General that we would not allow the police and the
traffic officials to detain people illegally but I have been assured
that the penalty for most of the traffic offences shall be community
service which I think is a very progressive development. That is going
to enforce discipline on our roads and sanity to the system.”
Also speaking, Chairman of Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on
Judiciary, Human Rights and Public Petition, Hon. Adefunmilayo Tejuosho
commended Governor Ambode over the move, saying such would go a long way
in positively impacting on the drive of government to decongest the
prisons.
She said: “This is a welcome development. You know Lagos State is
definitely the centre of excellence; we put things in motion and other
states follow. We have to appreciate the Governor of Lagos State, Mr.
Akinwunmi Ambode; the Ministry of Justice, the Judiciary and also the
House of Assembly for cooperation because to move the state forward, we
have to work together as a unit.
“It is good that at the point of the incidence when somebody commits
traffic offence, it can be handled immediately. You know a lot of times
they say that a lot of awaiting trials are in the prisons detained and
we are trying to decongest those areas and this is a good way of doing
that and getting justice at the same time.
“You know as they say, justice delayed is justice denied and we are
trying to do everything quickly so that whoever commits an offence will
not have an excuse to say that he is being detained unjustly and so on,”
Tejuosho said.
The lawmaker, who is representing Mushin Constituency 1, added that the
establishment of the Mobile Court would make the people to be more
careful and obey the laws of the land.
She said: “Sometimes when you put a stick and you have a dog that wants
to do something wrong, if it knows that the stick is something to
punish it, the dog will not do it. So, it also will deter people from
committing offences when they know there is a Mobile Court that will
actually dispense justice quickly; people will be more careful and
Nigeria and Lagos State especially will be a safer place for us all.”
source: Lagos State Government
source: Lagos State Government
No comments:
Post a Comment