General News of Wednesday, 12 August 2020

Source: Michael Aseidu, Contributor

Free wrongfully detained prisoners – FIPM

CEO of Marrer Ghana Limited, Novihoho Afaglo CEO of Marrer Ghana Limited, Novihoho Afaglo

Pressure group, Free Innocent Prisoners Movement (FIPM), is calling on President Akufo-Addo to facilitate the release of people who were wrongfully detained in the country’s prisons.

According to the group, there are a number of prisoners in the various prisons who were incarcerated due to the negligence of a prosecutor or the in patience of a judge.

As part of their humanitarian work, the group made up of a team of lawyers visited the Nsawam Prisons to interact with some inmates to get first-hand information about their plights.

"Our thoughts were just right having series of conversations with some inmates, one could just tell our prosecutors many at times just make up stories to get people away," the group stated.

Speaking to journalists, Chief Executive Officer of Marrer Ghana Limited and Susatgad Boat Building and Fishing Industries, Mr Novihoho Afaglo, said there were instances where teenagers were treated as adults and faced what he termed as ‘unfair trial.

He said the lives of these prisoners are doomed whiles others are there because they were at the wrong place at the wrong time

"What we are saying is that keeping these innocent people in prison in the mist of criminals, I bet we all know what that means," the CEO stated.

Mr Afaglo together with his team pleaded with judges in the country's courts to give a listening ear to the accused persons who comes before them. "We plead with the judges not to take hasty decisions when it comes to trialing of cases because human lives matter.