3 Convicts walk free - Human rights body pays their fines
The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) has paid various court fines to set three convicts free from jail in a special gesture.
The international body settled GH¢2,750 to trigger the release of Isaac Adu, 18; Henry Ebenezer Richard Akornor, 20, and Samuel Larweh, 27, from the Koforidua Prison.
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The three were serving various terms after defaulting in the payment of fines upon being convicted of their respective “minor offences” at different times.
Adu was convicted on May 21, this year, for failing to report a commercial motorcycle (okada) rider involved in an accident in which he was a passenger at Asuom in the Kwaebibirem Municipality in the Eastern Region.
His inability to raise GH¢1,200 to settle the court fine meant he had to start a nine-month jail term.
Akornor and Larweh from Asuom and Somanya in the Yilo Krobo District respectively were convicted for petty thefts.
Akornor could not pay a GH¢600 court fine after he was convicted of theft for transfering GH¢800 from his sister’s mobile money wallet to his his, and so started an eight-month jail term in February, this year.
After serving three of those eight months, the fine reduced to GH¢350.
Larweh was jailed for nine months after failing to pay a GH¢1,200.00 fine for stealing GH¢1,700 from his boss, ostensibly to pay the medical bills of his sick mother in April, this year.
Prison decongestion
The Africa Office Director of the CHRI, Ms Mina Mensah, told the media that the initiative was part of the organisation’s effort to help to decongest the prisons, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We have undertaken this project as part of the initiative to decongest our prisons that are very much overpopulated in order to also curb the spread of COVID-19 in some of these facilities. Some of the convicts actually never deserved to be here not because they did no wrong but because the custodial sentences were severe,” she said.
She said the application of custodial sentences for minor offences in the country should be looked at, stressing that it sought to criminalise poverty, and pointed to the fact that most of the culprits in the petty offence bracket fell victim due to poverty.
She appealed to the government to consider the custodial sentences attached to petty theft to decongest the prisons, and lessen the burden on the government in taking care of prisoners.
Appreciation
The Commander of the Koforidua Prisons, Deputy Director of Prisons (DDP) Kwaku Ababio Ali, expressed gratitude to the CHIR, and appealed to other non-governmental organisations, corporate organisations and well-to-do individuals to emulate the gesture to help decongest Ghana’s prisons.
He also cautioned the general public to be circumspect in their behaviours as one bad turn could unnecessarily take away their freedom, and also putting pressure on the facilities at various prisons in the country.
The ex-convicts expressed gratitude to the CHRI for the support.
