Towards Realization of Criminal Justice System in Nigeria: The Hope of Common Persons

This paper examined the realization of criminal justice system in Nigeria, the hope of common persons. The criminal justice system helps in addressing such infringements for overall well-being of society. However, the Nigeria criminal justice system has fundamental defects and flaws as manifest in every process of system from the police, judiciary and correctional service as it affects common persons. This paper examines the reality of criminal justice system in Nigeria, the hope of common persons. Marxist theoretical framework is adopted for the study. The study’s methodology was derived strictly from secondary data, such as official state documents and government reports. The study found that criminal justice system in Nigeria operates on cash and carry justice as such chasing the common persons out of justice. Unfortunately, from the police to the judiciary and correctional service, the system operates strictly on financial inducement (money bags) which common persons cannot afford. The study recommends that, the National Assembly should make laws that will empower the government to make independent bodies such as Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to strictly oversee or monitor only the activities of criminal justice system in Nigeria. The primary duty and responsibility of the criminal justice system is to dispense justice in accordance to the rule of law. However, in practice the criminal justice system determines the guilt nor innocence of potential suspects, and the allocation of fair and proportional punishment to the offenders.