18th July, 2026
AN OPEN LETTER TO HIS EXCELLENCY, DR. ALEX CHIOMA OTTI, OFR, EXECUTIVE GOVERNOR OF ABIA STATE, AND HER EXCELLENCY, MRS. PRISCILLA CHIDINMA OTTI, WIFE OF THE GOVERNOR, ON THE NEED TO ESTABLISH CHILD-FRIENDLY JUSTICE AND DIVERSION CENTRES IN ABIA STATE
Your Excellencies,
We write on behalf of the Centre for Human Rights Advocacy and Wholesome Society (CEHRAWS), a non-partisan civil rights organisation and a proud member of the Child Protection Network (CPN)-Nigeria, to respectfully commend your administration for its unwavering commitment to improving the welfare of children through sustained investments in education, healthcare, social protection and institutional reforms aimed at securing a brighter future for every Abia child.
We are equally encouraged by the numerous humanitarian initiatives championed by Her Excellency, Mrs. Priscilla Chidinma Otti, whose compassion and commitment to women and children continue to inspire hope among vulnerable families across our dear State.
It is against this backdrop that we respectfully invite Your Excellencies to consider another transformative reform capable of placing Abia State among Nigeria’s leading child-rights compliant states (the establishment of Child-Friendly Justice and Diversion Centres).
Recently, the Lagos State Government, with the technical support of UNICEF, strengthened its Child-Friendly Justice System by expanding Diversion Centres and Diversion Programmes for children who come into conflict with the law. This initiative deserves national commendation because it recognises that children require correction, guidance and rehabilitation rather than unnecessary criminalisation.
Many children who find themselves in conflict with the law are not hardened criminals. More often than not, they are victims of broken homes, poverty, neglect, abuse, peer pressure, drug addiction, exploitation or other adverse social circumstances beyond their control.
A Child-Friendly Justice System simply means a justice process designed specifically to protect children. It ensures that when a child commits a minor offence, the child’s age, emotional development, vulnerability and best interests are taken into account. Instead of exposing such children to detention facilities or lengthy criminal trials that may permanently damage their future, they are given opportunities for counselling, family intervention, education, behavioural therapy, vocational training and rehabilitation.
A Diversion Centre is therefore not a prison. It is a safe environment where trained psychologists, social workers, counsellors, legal practitioners and child protection professionals work together to help children understand their mistakes, rebuild their lives and return to society as responsible citizens.
This approach reflects the timeless wisdom that every child deserves a second chance.
The legal foundation for this initiative is firmly established under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), particularly Sections 17 and 34, which promote social justice and protect the dignity of every person. It is equally supported by the Child Rights Act, 2003, the Abia State Child Rights Law, the Administration of Criminal Justice framework, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, and the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (Beijing Rules), all of which encourage rehabilitation and diversion as the preferred response for children in conflict with the law whenever appropriate.
Your Excellencies, Abia State has already distinguished itself in several reform initiatives under your administration. The remarkable investments in public education, healthcare, infrastructure, environmental sanitation and governance reforms have demonstrated that bold leadership can indeed transform society.
The establishment of Child-Friendly Justice and Diversion Centres would naturally complement these achievements by preventing juvenile delinquency, reducing youth crime, discouraging repeat offending, preventing prison congestion and protecting children from the lifelong stigma associated with criminal prosecution.
Such centres would also strengthen collaboration among the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, the Judiciary, the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Nigerian Correctional Service, civil society organisations, faith-based organisations, traditional institutions, development partners/UNICEF.
We respectfully encourage Your Excellency, Governor Alex Chioma Otti, OFR, to direct the relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies to commence the policy and legislative processes necessary for establishing Child-Friendly Justice and Diversion Centres across Abia State.
We equally appeal to Her Excellency, Mrs. Priscilla Chidinma Otti, to graciously lend her voice and influence to this noble cause by championing a statewide campaign for restorative juvenile justice and comprehensive child protection.
As a frontline civil society organisation working daily with survivors of abuse, vulnerable children and families in distress, CEHRAWS stands ready to partner with the Abia State Government, Development Partners/UNICEF, the Child Protection Network, and other stakeholders in designing, advocating for and implementing this important reform.
History has shown that societies become safer not merely by building more prisons, but by building more opportunities for children to become responsible adults.
Children should not be defined by the mistakes they make at an early age. Rather, they should be defined by the opportunities society gives them to learn, reform and succeed.
The true measure of a civilized society is not how severely it punishes its children, but how compassionately it restores them.
We are confident that under your visionary leadership, Abia State can once again set a benchmark in child protection by becoming one of Nigeria’s foremost champions of Child-Friendly Justice.
Please accept, Your Excellencies, the assurances of our highest esteem and continued partnership in the promotion of justice, human dignity and the best interests of every Abia child.
Yours respectfully,
Okoye, Chuka Peter
Executive Director, CEHRAWS
cehraws@gmail.com | +234(0)808-035-1242 (WhatsApp only)
Facebook: @cehraws
