Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has condemned the three-year prison sentence given to a 28-year-old mechanic, Akeem Jimoh, who was convicted for stealing tubers of yam in Osun State.
Jimoh was sentenced on Wednesday by an Osogbo Chief Magistrate Court after he admitted stealing 17 tubers of yam valued at N35,000. He told the court he acted out of hunger and begged for mercy.
The presiding magistrate, Muibah Olatunji, however, sentenced him to three years in jail with hard labour, without an option of fine.
Reacting in a statement on Friday, Falana described the ruling as unfair and called for an urgent review of Nigeria’s sentencing system.
He said, “It is high time that the sentencing policy of the country was made humane. Why should the government be made to waste scarce public funds on the feeding, accommodation, and medical care for the convict who was jailed for stealing tubers of yam worth N35,000?”
The Senior Advocate of Nigeria also compared the situation with practices in other countries, saying, “The attention of judges and magistrates ought to be drawn to the fact that judicial officers in capitalist countries have stated that it is no longer a crime for the poor to steal food to feed themselves and their family members.”
Falana further disclosed that steps were already being taken to challenge the ruling. “Meanwhile, we have briefed a lawyer to file an appeal against the conviction and the three-year jail term of Akeem Jimoh,” he added.
