THE Kogi State Government, through the Ministry of Justice, has established the State Office of the Public Defender and Citizens’ Right Commission (PDCRC), to provide legal aid and other related services free of charge to citizens who may not be able to afford the services of lawyers.
The Director-General of PDCRC, Barr. Abdullahi Zakari, disclosed this when he led a team of lawyers from the Commission in an advocacy visit to some stakeholders in the state.
The stakeholders visited included: the State Commandant, Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), Peter Maigari; State Commissioner of Police, CP Ede Ekpeji; Nigerian Correctional Service, Kogi Command, CC. Abubakar Gurim; and the Chairman, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Barr. Sam Owoyomi.
Zakari also added that Kogi state Government had employed 150 lawyers for adequate manpower to enhance the speedy administration of criminal justice law across the state.
Zakari noted that the bill establishing the Commission was signed into law by His Excellency, Gov. Yahaya Bello, on June 3, 2019, saying its vision is to ensure that justice sector in the state was reformed and better for it with a speedy dispensation of justice.