R –L: Prosecutor, Nigeria

Prison Official, Toyosi Bello , Barr. Uchendu (PRAWA), Ago Iwoye D.P.O., and

Community Lawyer

Dr. Uju Agomoh, Executive Director PRAWA, in one of her visits to the Nigeria Prison, Ogun State Command, Ijebu Ode on the 19th of March, 2014 met with Alhaja Toyosi Bello, who begged for legal aid.

She portrayed herself as a human rights activist who had been unjustly incarcerated owing to information she shared about misdeeds within her community.

Uju Agomoh Ph.d. had to assign the matter to Barr. Chinelo Uchendu (S & J Lagos office) and PRAWA Lagos office team, which they visited and interviewed Alhaja Toyosi Bello at Ijebu Ode prisons.

Toyosi was charged with ‘Conduct likely to cause breach of peace-(MAG/8c/2014)’ at the magistrate court Ago-Iwoye. She had been on detention for close to one month as at that time and had been unable to meet the stringent bail conditions by the Magistrate.

She has been in the black book of the entire Ago-Iwoye community which had made it difficult to have people willing to come forward as bail sureties. She was tagged ”proud, troublesome and oppressive natured”. The town feels Toyosi has been harassing them for too long and they are resolute to seeing that she rots in jail!

Considering the sensitive nature of the case, we had to be diplomatic and extremely polite in speech and approach, so the community doesn’t consider us a threat in anyway. It was indeed a ”difficult case” and mediation seemed the best option out. Prosecutor already has 7 witnesses while defence had none. Full trial was to commence on 2nd of April so we sort ways to stall it. Mediation talks commenced with a visit to the Kabiyesi’s palace and to the affected persons within the community. They sounded really aggrieved but we attempted to pacify the as much as we could.

 PRAWA made applications for variation of her bail conditions and this was granted. Unfortunately, each time the matter was adjourned in court, the prosecutors brought up fresh charges against the accused. Two additional charges –(MAG/11c/2014) and (MAG/16c/2014) were added up to the list of cases we had to attend to on behalf of Toyosi. To God glory, Charge No‟s MAG/8C/2014 and MAG/16C/2014 were struck out on Monday, June 9, 2014, while MAG/11C/2014 was struck out on Monday 16th June 2014. An approximate number of 10 trips were made to Ijebu ode and Ago Iwoye on Alhaja Toyosi Bello matter.

She is now out of prison and had visited PRAWA Lagos office for counseling sessions on life outside prison walls.