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By Luminous Jannamike and Ezra Ukanwa, Abuja

LEGAL experts have called for uniformity in the adjudication process of cases involving child offenders.

They also called on the government to give more support for the implementation of the Child Rights Act.

The experts spoke at a workshop on proposed adjudication guidelines for children and young persons in conflict with the Laws of the FCT, held in Abuja, the nation’s capital, on Wednesday..

Speaking, the Director of Criminal Justice Reform Department, Federal Ministry of Justice, Leticia Ayoola Daniels, said: “This document is proposed to create that uniformism in that sector. It wouldn’t be too nice that two judges with the same scenario will come with different conclusions and even if they come up with different conclusions it means there must be some kind of framework to get to that conclusion.

“And of course, they are the same framework they are likely to get to the same conclusion eventually. The second reason that is very attractive is that the child right act has been there but the level of implementing it has been quite slow and this document will produce that speed in implementing this document. There’s nothing to say this is the rule, there is nothing to say this is the procedure. The adults have their own procedure, they have their own guidelines except for this aspect of the law.”

On his part, a retired controller of prisons, Francis Enobore, called for new legal procedures that would ensure protection of the future of young offenders.

He said the federal government must now begin to put in place programs that would help redirect the minds of young children from crime.

“We need to adopt practices and processes that will ensure the protection of their tomorrow, that is accomodating procedures that will impact very minimal adverse effect on them. Let us address our minds to programs that will give them opportunities to excel. There are some of them that have great potential, so how can we redirect this excess energy, time and resources”, he advised.

Equally, the lead consultant, Ugonna Ezekwem, said that part of the efforts to ensure that the justice system works for young offenders in Nigeria, would be the adoption of the proposed adjudication guidelines by relevant legal bodies.

“Our mission is to develop guidelines that will support the courts in doing their work when they sentence those children. So, today, we came together to discuss the guidelines that we have developed over the past few weeks.

“We have had several meetings revising the guidelines, and we’re now have a final draft which is the fourth draft of this guideline and the guideline is to ensure that when children are involved in a case, things are done in such a way that we recognise their age, their mental capacity, and their special vulnerability so that they are not treated the same as adults.