Prisoners take managers to court

A GROUP of prisoners have gone to court in a bid to have the management of Johannesburg prison investigated by the Hawks for alleged corruption‚ theft and fraud.

Fourteen inmates lodged their application last month at the Johannesburg High Court.

The prisoners‚ being held in Johannesburg prison’s Medium-B section‚ are demanding that the sport‚ recreational‚ art and culture committee at the correctional services facility be reimbursed an estimated R2-million which they claim was “stolen” by prison management.

They claim the “theft” dates back to 2011 and that money was siphoned from the prison shop bank account.

The money‚ according to internal correctional services prison management memos seen by TimesLIVE‚ is meant to be used for prisoner rehabilitation and recreation programmes, including sports and gym equipment.

Documents submitted to the court show inmates are demanding that:

ý The money due to the committee‚ plus interest, dating back to 2011 is paid back;

ý Management of the prison shop be handed back to the committee; and

ý Correctional Services Minister Michael Masutha launch an investigation involving the Hawks into why money due to the committee was never paid over.

The inmates going to court are from the prison’s participative management committee.

There was an agreement‚ they said‚ between prison management and prisoners that 5% of the shop’s profits would be used to top up funds set aside by correctional services for prisoners’ recreation programmes.

Committee chairman Sifiso Ndlovu said in an affidavit the shop sold goods to inmates but prison officials were reaping the benefits‚ which contravened the Correctional Services Act.

Prisoners claim that prison management owed at least R2-million.

The department intends opposing the application but intends to launch its own internal investigation, spokesman Ofentse Morwane said.