A 16-year-old boy, Abdallah Mohammed has been jailed 25 years for stealing GH¢ 10 in a market at Asokwa within the Ashanti region.
According to Beauty Emefa Nartey, checks by Corruption Watch, Ghana indicated that the boy had already served 10 years out of the jail term with no justice served.
Speaking on the Corruption Watch segment on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem show, Beauty Emefa Nartey of the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) explained that the boy was arrested together with some alleged robbers, but Mohammed’s sentence was as a result of poor legal systems and supervision.
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“Normally when it comes to juvenile cases, the maximum sentence is three years with the judgment mostly declared at a juvenile court after which the suspect is made to serve in a Borstal Home.
“In Abdallah’s case, it was unlawful for the judge to pronounce the judgement together with the adults though the case was heard together and due to these circumstances, Abdallah may now come out into society as a bitter man and will commit more serious crime without any consideration,” she warned.
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Human Rights Lawyer, Francis Xavier, on the same show, stated that the case could best be handled by the Ghana Legal Aid scheme, but the scheme is crippled due to lack of funds.
“The Legal Aid Scheme is supposed to take care of such cases because the justice system sometimes does not promote the case of the needy and the vulnerable but over the years, the Legal Aid’s budget has been nothing to write home about.
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“Our human justice sometimes produces injustice but we can still appeal on this case if we understand the basis of his charge,” he assured.