A former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Timi Frank has described the N10 million bail imposed by Justice Friday Egwuatu of the Federal High Court Abuja on detained minors charged to court as judicial tyranny and cruelty to children.
He called on President Bola Tinubu to order the unconditional release of minors.
DAILY POST reports that the detained minors who appeared before the court last Friday were arrested over their alleged participation in the recent #EndBadGovernance protests in parts of the country.
Frank in a statement issued on Sunday condemned the detention of the minors in an adult correctional facility among hardened criminals.
He lamented that the children have spent over 90 days in detention under inhuman conditions, saying even looters in the country who contributed to impoverishing and confining these kids to the streets don’t get similar treatment because they are buoyant financially to buy freedom when arrested.
Frank noted that for Tinubu not to have ordered the release of the children since Friday but watched them sent to prison despite public outcry, shows heartlessness and lack of fatherly love and care for children.
He added that even in Western countries like the US and the UK, children who are convicted of crimes of murder are not sent to jail but rather taken to juvenile homes for psychological therapy and rehabilitation.
He said that was what Nigerians expected from the President.
Frank added: “The President must ditch bureaucracy at this time and immediately order the release of these children with a directive that they be immediately enrolled in school.
“The ruling of the judge after seeing the harrowing plight of the kids in their malnourished and fragile state shows that the judiciary has been heavily compromised to reward corruption within the system of which they are beneficiaries.
“They have sold their conscience too. That’s why a judge can post N10 million and other stiff requirements as condition for each kid to be granted bail.”
Frank describes N10m bail slammed on detained minors as judicial tyranny
