FG releases 4,068 inmates to decongest prisons

The federal government has released a total of 4,068 inmates in all the custodial centres across the country in an effort to decongest the custodial centres in the country.

The Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, while flagging off the payment of fines and compensations for inmates held on accounts of their inability to pay as penalties for their crimes, on Saturday at the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Kuje, Abuja, said the gesture was in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

“As at November 17, 2023, there were about 80,804 inmates in 253 custodial facilities nationwide, which total installed capacity for the 253 custodial centres adds up to less than 50,000. This shows that our custodial facilities are overcrowded, necessitating this initiative we are flagging off today, which is targeted towards addressing the overcrowding conundrum bedeviling our custodial centres and their reformatory function.

“Today, we flag off the release of a total of 4,068 inmates who are serving different terms of imprisonment in lieu of fines or compensation.

“Most of the benefitting inmates on the verge of their freedom are indigents who cannot afford to pay their fines and are languishing in custody.

“The sum of N585 million was raised by philanthropic individuals, groups and corporate bodies as part of their corporate social responsibility for this purpose.

All inmates in custodial centres who have fines or compensation not exceeding N1 million are qualified and would benefit from this gesture. In addition, we are also providing each of them a stipend to enable them return to their communities,” he said.

The minister said the inmates had been given the requisite training aimed at impacting their lives functionally and equipping them with the knowledge for their self-reliance upon discharge.

He called on the larger community to receive the returning citizens with open arms, urging them to refrain from stigmatising them as it could drive the released inmates back to crime.

In his address earlier, the Controller General of Corrections, Haliru Nababa, said the emergence of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) Act, 2019 had brought a huge sigh of relief to the Service as it encapsulates a number of provisions geared towards decongesting the custodial facilities in line with global best practice.