El Rol de los Gobiernos Parroquiales en el marco del COOTAD

88 where the provision of principle 8 above is implemented, a prisoner will not only earn income but should be able to offer financial support to his family.

Principle 9 of the said Basic Principles encourages the authorities to allow the prisoners to have access to the health services available in the country without discrimination on the ground of their legal status. Principle 10 of the said Basic Principles encourages the community and social institutions to take part in the reformation exercise aimed at the protection of the interest of the victims and creating favourable conditions of reintegrating ex-prisoners in the society. Principle 11 provides that the above principles shall be applied impartially.

Apart from the above, it is important that we consider the provisions of the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for Non-Custodial Measures (The Tokyo Rules), 1990.

4.1.2 United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for Non-Custodial Measures (The

89 Rule 1 provides that the present Standard Minimum Rules is a set of basic principles for the promotion of the use of non-custodial measures, as well as minimum safeguards for persons subject to alternatives to imprisonment. Its aim is to promote greater community involvement in the management of criminal justice, specifically in the treatment of offenders.

It is also geared towards the promotion of a sense of responsibility among offenders towards society. However, the implementation of the Rules is subject to the political, economic, social and cultural conditions of each country and the aims and objectives of its criminal justice system. When implementing the Rules, member states are encouraged to ensure that they take into consideration the need to balance the interest of the offenders, the victim of the crime and the society especially as it concerns the safety of the public.

Rule 2 provides that the scope of non-custodial measures shall cover persons subject to prosecution, trial or the execution of a sentence at all stages of the administration of criminal justice and it is to be applied without discrimination on the grounds of race, colour, sex, age, language, religion, political or other opinion national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Rule 3 provides that countries shall introduce legislation in their respective domains for the purpose of the introduction of non-custodial measures and the rights of offenders subjected to non-custodial measures. The law to be introduced should provide a means of redress for any person who is aggrieved by the order of non-custodial measures.

Rules 5 and 6 encourage countries to use pre-trial detention as a last resort in criminal proceedings with due regard to the investigation of the alleged offence and for the protection of society and the victim. In a similar vein, the United Nations Human Rights Committee General Comment No 08 of 30^th March 1982, states that article 9 of ICCPR „restricts the use of pre-trial detention except in exceptional circumstances which shall be for a short period of

90 time‟.¹⁹⁸ On this note, the agencies responsible for crime prevention are required to timely discharge an offender where there is no sufficient evidence to proceed with the prosecution.

Rules 7 and 8 encourage the sentencing authorities to take into account the rehabilitative needs of the offender, the protection of society and the interest of the victim.

For this purpose, sentencing authorities may consider the options of disposing off a case by ways of verbal sanctions such as admonition, reprimand and warning. The sentencing authorities may also adopt other options such as conditional discharge, economic sanctions, fines, confiscation or an expropriation order, restitution to the victim, compensation order, suspended or deferred sentence, probation and judicial supervision, a community service order, house arrest, among others.

Rule 9 provides for post-sentencing alternative disposition which may include furlough¹⁹⁹ and half-way houses, work or education releases, various forms of parole, remission and pardon. Rule 10 provides for supervision of sentence of non-custodial measures. The aim of which is to reduce reoffending and to assist the offender‟s reintegration into society in a way which minimises the likelihood of return to crime.

The provisions of the Tokyo Rules have been partly adopted by the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.²⁰⁰ Obviously, the implementation of sentence of non-custodial measures in Nigeria will go along the way to reducing the incidence of overcrowding in Nigerian prisons and overstretching of the prisons facilities. The most common forms of this aspect of criminal justice delivery are sentence to terms community service, probation and judicial supervision rather than imprisonment. In this practice, those found guilty of minor offences may be given sentence of non-custodial measures rather than imprisonment.

However, we may agree that sentencing to terms community service, probation and judicial

198The United Nations Human Rights Committee, „ICCPR General Comment No 08 of 30^th March 1982‟,<www.ohchr.org/en/...pages/ccpr.aspx> accessed on Wednesday, 16^th December, 2015.

199 Furlough in this context means rest and recreation.

200 The Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, Parts 44 and 45, Sections 453 to 468.

91 supervision still requires oversight and cost implications that may be difficult to meet up with when juxtaposed with the economic reality of the country presently. As a result of these, the researcher advocates for sentencing options such as admonition, reprimand and warning;

conditional discharge; economic sanctions and monetary penalties such as fines, confiscation or an expropriation order; restitution to the victim or compensation order; suspended or deferred sentence as oppose to imprisonment in Nigeria. This will aid in rehabilitation of offenders in Nigeria. From the result of the questionnaires administrated in the three prisons of Abakaliki, Enugu and Abuja, 90.2% of the respondents agreed that sentencing options in Nigeria contribute to overcrowding in Nigerian prisons.