He said the indiscriminate issuing of remand orders by magistrates was one of the factors behind the current embarrassing prison congestion in the country.
Justice Mohammad, in his keynote address at the 2022 induction course for newly appointed magistrates and other judges of the lower courts in Abuja, charged: “Chief judges must ensure that henceforth, all magistrates submit return of cases quarterly to the various judicial service commission/committee for assessment.”
He added: “On prison decongestion, it is a scenario, which has become a national embarrassment. The numerous and sometimes needle remand orders issued by the magistrate are a major factor responsible for the congestion of our prisons.”
Mohammad said the theme of this year’s workshop: ‘Nurturing High Standard of Judicial performance,’ was apt, pointing out that delayed justice breeds self-help.
