By Kennedy Mbele

He is full of compassion for distressed fellow human beings. This motivated the establishment of an NGO which, according to him, helped to secure the release of no fewer than 270 detainees from prison. Ndukwe Gordian, a retired. Master Warrant Officer in the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) and founder of Foundation for the Empowerment of Detainees, speaks on how the police actions keep innocent people behind bars, and how his NGO works to ensure their release.

Many NGOs are geared at reforming the society. What motivated you to establish your NGO? 

When I was in service, one  day as I was going to Oshodi, I saw a black maria parked by the road side as a result of a fault that it developed on the way to court.  The suspects in the vehicle were screaming because the vehicle must have carried twice its capacity and the weather was hot. As I was in uniform, I was privileged to talk to some of them through the window. And from our discussion, I observed that most of the suspects did not commit any tangible offence, yet had been in prison awaiting trial for months and even years. That day, I made up my mind that as soon as I retire from service, I will spend the rest of my life assisting detainees to the best of my ability.

How do you carry out your mandate without being seen as aiding and abetting crime in the society?

We do this by going  to court to look at suspects case files with a view to finding  nature of their cases. We confirm the charges with the prosecutors before inviting the families of the suspects to follow us and see what is happening.

In other words, your organisation facilitates the release of detainees. Is there any category of suspect your organization helps or does not help?

We don’t get involved in established cases of armed robbery, particularly those caught with fire arms. We also don’t associate with detainees suspected of engaging in terrorism. Those are the two major categories of case we abhor. In other cases, we use our initiative.

Apart from facilitating the release of suspects, what other services does your organization render?

We render other services which may be classified as minor. For instance, we assist people arrested without the knowledge of their families to establish communication that will enhance their release. Also, if a suspect rejects a judgment passed on him / her and wants to appeal but doesn’t have the resources at hand, we file an appeal for him or her, if contacted.

 Is there any situation where by you advise a suspects  to plead not guilty to an offence he actually committed?

Yes, in some cases, especially minor ones, we advise them not to plead guilty before the court and then follow it up by going to the complainant and asking him or her to forgive the suspect and settle the matter out of court. So far, no complainant has ever turned down our request for  forgiveness or amicable resolution of matters. Upon withdrawal of such matters, we warn the accused never to commit similar offence again and that would be all.

 What is your take on the level of crime in Nigeria today?

The police are about  95 percent  responsible for the high number of inmates we have in prisons across the country.

How?                                                                                                                                                                               

If you check any prison today and find 50 inmates, 30 are innocent; only about 20 are criminals. How can the police see somebody going on the road and arrest him? They don’t investigate. Once you don’t have money to give them, they throw you into prison custody and that will be all, especially if no one comes to your aid.

Can you share with us some of the major achievements your organization has made so far?

We have done a lot of work that led to the release of several detainees. We have been to Ankpa Prisons in Kogi State where we facilitated the release of over 120 detainees. In Abuja Prisons, we helped to secure the release of  no fewer than 150 detained suspects. They are currently calling us in Ebonyi State but we have not been able to go there. The number of detainees we have assisted in Kirikiri, Ikoyi and Badagry Prisons in Lagos to ensure their freedom cannot be accurately recalled because they are so many. You know, Lagos is our base.