…Declares Mass Awaiting-Trial Detention Rights Violation
…Gives FG Six Months To Report Compliance
Daud Olatunji
The Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has ordered the Nigerian government to urgently decongest its correctional facilities, ruling that the country’s prolonged detention of awaiting-trial inmates violates fundamental human rights.
The Court, in a judgment delivered on May 15, 2026, held that Nigeria’s criminal justice and correctional system breaches core protections guaranteed under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, particularly the rights to liberty, dignity, fair hearing, and trial within a reasonable time.
The case, filed as Suit No. ECW/CCJ/APP/05/25 by the Centre for Community Law, challenged what it described as systemic delays in criminal prosecutions and the widespread reliance on prolonged pre-trial detention across Nigerian custodial centres.
Delivering judgment on behalf of a three-member panel led by Justice Ricardo Claudio Monteiro, the Court ruled that overcrowded prisons driven largely by awaiting-trial inmates amount to degrading treatment and a direct violation of inmates’ dignity.
Other members of the panel were Justice Sengu Mohamed Koroma (Judge Rapporteur) and Justice Edward Amoako Asante.
The Court held that Nigeria violated Articles 1, 3, 5, 6, and 7(1)(b) and (d) of the African Charter, noting that the situation reflected “systemic and prolonged pre-trial detention practices” and a failure of the state’s duty to protect detainees’ rights.
It further affirmed that the doctrine of actio popularis allowed the applicant, a non-governmental organisation, to institute public interest litigation on behalf of affected inmates, confirming the Court’s jurisdiction over the matter.
Relying on 2024 official prison statistics presented before it, the Court noted that out of 79,237 inmates in Nigeria, 52,519 were awaiting trial—representing about 66 per cent of the entire inmate population.
The Court observed that many detainees were being held for bailable offences or for periods exceeding the maximum sentences prescribed for their alleged crimes, describing the situation as incompatible with the presumption of innocence.
It further held that Nigeria failed to sufficiently rebut the evidence presented, adding that the circumstances pointed to a breakdown of institutional safeguards meant to prevent unlawful or excessive detention.
While the Federal Government argued that detention followed due process and that correctional facilities were adequately managed, the Court dismissed the defence, stating that lawful arrest does not justify indefinite detention without trial.
Consequently, the Court ordered Nigeria to take immediate steps to reform its correctional system, including the implementation of a comprehensive prison decongestion policy and expanded use of non-custodial sentencing for minor and bailable offences.
It also directed the establishment of mechanisms for periodic judicial review of all cases involving prolonged pre-trial detention.
In addition, the Court gave Nigeria a six-month deadline to submit a detailed compliance report, including data on inmates released, tried, or transferred as part of efforts to reduce overcrowding.
The judgment is being regarded as one of the strongest regional rulings in recent years on prison reform and human rights compliance, with significant implications for Nigeria’s justice and correctional administration.
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