Ishaq Bello

Justice Ishaq Usman Bello (born 5 January 1956) is a Nigerian jurist, the Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, and Nigeria's nominated candidate for the 2020 judicial elections of the International Criminal Court based in The Hague, Netherlands. He is better known for his effort towards decongesting several prisons, now known as correctional facilities, in Nigeria.

During the earlier part of his career, Bello was, for official reasons, off and on the bench. In November 1984, he left private practice to become a state counsel at the Kaduna State Ministry of Justice and it took him until the following year to become a magistrate.

During this period, Bello presided over several high-profile cases, including the State vs Francis Okoye and Others following an assassination attempt on the life of the late Dora Akunyili, the then director-general of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

He also presided over the "Apo Six" case starting from 2005. The case, which was called Nigeria's "most infamous case of extrajudicial killing" by the BBC, cost six young civilians their lives. In 2017, Judge Bello convicted two police officers over their involvement in the murder of two out of the six civilians.

"The two defendants have no regard for the sanctity of human lives," Judge Bello was quoted by AFP news agency as telling the court. "They are not only over-zealous but also extremely reckless."

Justice Ishaq Bello's appointment as the substantive Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory was confirmed on 28 May 2015.

Chief Judge of the FCT (2015 – 2021) As the Chief Judge of the FCT, Bello paid attention to the de-congestion of prisons in Abuja. He started visiting prisons within his jurisdiction, releasing over forty awaiting trial prisoners in the process.

By the end of October 2017, he was appointed as the chairman of the Presidential Committee on Prison Reforms and De-congestion, now Presidential Committee on Correctional Service Reforms and De-congestion, by the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami. The committee's responsibility was to lead the reform processes of the Nigerian prison system.

Since the inauguration of the committee, over 3768 inmates have been released from 36 correctional facilities nationwide.

Influences Bello created enforcement procedure rules for the Child Right Act in 2015. The provisions set out implementation guidelines for cases involving children, making court proceedings more humane and sensitive to the needs of children.

He was also the head of the committee that came up with the Administration of Criminal Justice (ACJ) act, which has now been recommended for adoption by all states in Nigeria.

Accomplishment Ishaq Bello was made Life Bencher by the Nigerian Body of Benchers in 2019.

International Criminal Court Bello has been nominated to be Nigeria's candidate for the 2020 judicial elections of the International Criminal Court based in The Hague, Netherlands. "Comparative Analysis of the Penal Code, The Criminal Code, The Criminal Procedure Act of the Northern and Southern States" (delivered at the Nigerian Law School). Bench Book of Best Practices (2017).