FG expresses commitment to decongestion of prisons nationwide

The Federal Government has expressed its determination to decongest custodial centres across the country, saying that relevant government agencies are working assiduously to accelerate the judicial process and ensure speedy trials for inmates awaiting trial.

Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made this known on Wednesday during an unscheduled inspection visit to the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Kuje, Abuja.

He commended inmates of the Kuje Medium Security Custodial Centre for their commitment to reformatory skill acquisition aimed at their rehabilitation and successful reintegration into society.

The Minister noted that the current administration is committed to decongesting correctional centres, especially for inmates awaiting trial.

He said the visit was necessitated by the Federal Government’s commitment to ensuring the well-being and rehabilitation of inmates.

“I decided to come without prompting them, to see the living conditions of inmates and interact with them directly.

“We wanted to see the medical facility, their skill acquisition centres, see them actually practising their skills, as well as the National Open University.

“I think we are very pleased that the story we are seeing today is quite different from the general public perception,” he said.

He stated that the welfare of inmates remained vital to the Federal Government, hence the establishment of skill acquisition programmes.

He added that the ministry is working closely with the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) to bridge the gap in the timeframe for the conviction of inmates.

“We are working together, looking at inmates who have perhaps spent more time awaiting trial than they would have if they had been convicted.

“In this particular facility, over 200 inmates are convicted while about 804 are awaiting trial, so we have to design a methodology by being innovative.

“In the next couple of weeks or months, you are going to see a drastic reduction in the number of inmates we have.

“I want to assure you that we are working very closely with the AGF on ways to decongest our correctional centres,” he said.

The Minister, however, noted that a lot of work still needed to be done across the 240 correctional centres in the country.

He said that the ministry would embark on scheduled visits to other correctional centres outside the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

“We will be able to see things for ourselves so that both the ministry, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), and other stakeholders will know the right way to intervene in the situation of the correctional service.”

While emphasising the need for collaboration among stakeholders to ensure timely justice delivery, he lauded the dedication of correctional service personnel towards ensuring inmates are properly catered for.

The NBA President, Afam Osigwe, in his remarks, said that he had requested data on inmates awaiting trial to ascertain if there were cases pending against them.

“This will help the NBA probe new units and determine how lawyers can also come in to move for their release.

“Also, for persons who may have spent longer time than they would have if they were convicted, to see what process we can put in place to get them released,” he said.

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