New York, September 2, 2007—Africans In America News Watch has learnt that the prosecutor and the judge may be culpable in the prolonged abuse of about 100 economically disadvantaged females arrested by the Nigerian police in Lagos because the Commissioner of Police Mohammed Abubakar do not like women dressed on short skirts and T-shirts. The ‘criminalized’ and publicly disgraced women subsequently arraigned by Prosecutor Sergeant Chris Takim before Magistrate Adeola Adedayo of Ikeja Magistrate Court were ordered by the magistrate to pay N20,000 (equivalent of $200) each and to produce at least one surety each as the condition for bail.

Females arrested by the Nigerian police openly disgraced for the press and the public. These poor women were taken before the magistrate and required to pay large sum of money before they could be released on bail. Those who could not afford the money remained in prison. Their offense: Some are; 1) staying out late at night, others are; 2) wearing mini skirt, aka improper dressing (Improper dressing?)

Africans In America News Watch has also learnt that more than half of the 100 females had to stay in prison for over 25 days with hardcore criminals because they were so poor to meet the harsh bail condition.

Our investigation showed that 3 weeks after Magistrate Adeola Adedayo of Ikeja Magistrate Court set the harsh condition for bail, only 48 of the females charged before him have family members who were able to fulfill their bail conditions and were subsequently released.

Magistrate Adeola Adedayo had granted the accused persons bail in the sum of N20,000 each, and ordered that they should be remanded at the Kirikiri Minimum Prisons until they paid the N20,000 cash.

Our investigation also showed that the prosecutor, also a police man Sergeant Chris Takim, on his own part told the court during their arraignment that the ladies were indecently dressed, stressing that their conduct could lead to chaos. He said that the offence was punishable under Section 249 of the Lagos State laws 2003 and attracted two years jail term on conviction.

Lagos State Police commissioner, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar His men reportedly arrested poor females for indecent dressing while worst dressed affluent females were left alone; a clear case of class war. He however abandoned the operation and bowed under superior people’s power.

Investigations by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), a Nigerian government news service also showed that majority of those in detention were not able to contact their relatives who are outside Lagos State. NAN also reported that most of the accused persons were poor students and poor visitors.

The victims had a lot of bizarre stories about their experiences;

“Most of us arrested by the police for alleged prostitution or indecent dressing are students, travelers and traders,'' they said

A mother of two, who gave her name as Mrs. Chiegozie Albert, said she was arrested along Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, Ikeja, on her way to the market; “Their (police) vehicle stopped beside me and they pushed me into it. They called me asewo (prostitute) because I was wearing jeans trousers and an open top. I told them that I am a housewife but they didn’t listen to me. They took me to their Ikeja station and detained me along with other ladies. It was my husband who learnt of my arrest that came to bail me. He paid N5,000 before I was released,” she stated.

Also, a textile worker at Oshodi who was also docked at the crowded court recently told reporters that she was on her way home when she was arrested at Ikeja by policemen who accused her of being a prostitute.

“They accused me of wearing a mini skirt and a short T-shirt. I told them that I had just closed from work and showed them my identity card but they did not listen to me. They took me to their station where I met some other arrested ladies. They called all of us prostitutes.

“At night, some of them will come and start touching our breasts and I told them that I am not a prostitute, but they wouldn’t listen,” the lady who identified herself as Chinwe Okorie narrated to reporters.

 Africans In America News Watch investigation revealed that Lagos State Police commissioner, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar directed his men that people found “idling around” be arrested, in order to stem the crime wave in the city.

Our investigation revealed that following the directive, overzealous policemen went about arresting people, especially ladies wearing short skirts and t-shirts, arbitrarily in parts of the city.

The Lagos State Police command eventually formally jettisoned the illegal policy on August 30, 2007 under public pressure.

Nigerians are divided

Africans In America News Watch investigation revealed that there are divisions among Nigerians on this matter, as well as on whether errand officers will be held responsible.

Majority of Nigerians back home have very low expectation of the public officers, including the police and the judges; while majority of Nigeria International Community (Diaspora), especially those in United States expect the justice system to work better, and hence they pick a lot of holes in its handling of this matter.

A Lagos-based attorney who spoke to us on condition that names and gender will not be used stated that the justice system in Nigeria as a whole is still wrought with corruption, especially when issues affecting the economically disadvantaged are concerned.

Key questions and way forward

But the key questions government of Lagos and other states and administrators of justice in Nigeria have to address are the following;

• Why did the justice system completely fail in this case?
• Does The Prosecutor Sergeant Chris Takim have the discretion to either prosecute or reject the case, (and thereby free the ladies)? Could he have done something if he believes the arrests were illegal?
• Why did the presiding judge, Magistrate Adeola Adedayo who has a lot of discretionary powers to either dismiss the charges/cases, give the ladies very light bail condition or free them on their own recognizance, not have applied good or better judgment?
• Why did these two officers of the justice system mentioned above give signatures of approval to these illegal police actions? Why did they go along? Couldn’t they have stopped the abuses and free those women; or, are they there to go along with anything whatsoever the police gives to them, no matter how obviously illegal it may be?

The Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) did excellent job by coming out immediately to distance his government from the illegal police order and actions.

The Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) who did excellent job by coming out to distance his government from the illegal police order and actions might as well take every available steps to hold the Commissioner of Police Mohammed Abubakar, Prosecutor Sergeant Chris Takim, the presiding judge Magistrate Adeola Adedayo and any other officer of the justice system that failed to stop the illegal pains, humiliations and sufferings illegally inflicted on those poor females and some boys responsible for their actions and/or inactions.

The national and local justice system in Nigeria, the Nigeria Police Force and the Police Service Commission, the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, the Nigeria Bar Association, the Nigeria Body of Benchers, Nigeria Judiciary Service Commission among others must come in and hold all those who may have erred accountable.

The justice system should have checks and balances and oversights to ensure that abuses such as this do not happen; and any officer whose duty it is to have stopped those illegalities must be held accountable. That will be a very good lesson for future reference and to stop this sort of rubbish from repeating itself again in the area of administration of justice. That will restore the confidence of the common man and woman in the justice system, a very key ingredient of civil society.

The system will also have to pay adequate compensation to the violated individuals for illegal arrest, public humiliation, pains and suffering in police cells and prisons.