NEED FOR EFFECTIVE PRISON REFORM

Henry Udutchay argues government must pay more attention to the prisons

The recent jailbreaks at Koton Karfe Prison in Kogi State and Nsukka Prison in Enugu State, where about 32 inmates serving various jail terms escaped, once again, reinforced the clamour for effective reform of the country’s prison system. What is particularly disturbing is the frequency of jailbreaks in our prisons. For instance, prior to the recent jailbreak at Koton Karfe Prison, it had recorded two previous jailbreaks. The first occurred in 2013, while the second took place in 2014. The Kuje Medium Prison in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, recorded an embarrassing jailbreak and there was an attempted jailbreak in Abakaliki Prison in Ebonyi State where 10 people, including some notorious criminals, were shot dead. Similar jailbreaks also occurred in Enugu, Lagos and other parts of the country. These jailbreaks have no doubt exposed the porosity and rottenness of our prison system. They also call to question about the commitment of the government towards effective prison administration.

A visit to any of the prisons in the country will reveal their deplorable state. Virtually all the prisons in the country lack basic amenities. Even the newly established ones are operating in dilapidated structures which are not conducive for human habitation.

Apart from infrastructural decay, there is also the problem of accommodation. Available records showed that all the prisons in the country have been stretched beyond their capacity. For instance, the Kuje Medium Prison, which has capacity for about 500 inmates, is now harbouring nearly 1,000 inmates. This, no doubt, has far-reaching security implications, especially considering the fact that the overcrowding of prison facilities would make it difficult to effectively monitor the activities of the inmates.

Closely connected to the issue of inadequate accommodation is that of poor welfare and feeding of the inmates. It has been observed that allocation for the feeding and general welfare of the prisoners had been declining over the years. This has been attributed to dwindling government revenue. But the truth is that a hungry man is an angry man. Therefore any threat of hunger in the prison can precipitate a desperate action such as trying to escape from custody.

Another issue of concern is the poor welfare package and incentives for prison workers. Considering the very sensitive nature of their work, prison officials deserve to be well remunerated and provided with necessary tools and good working environment that would enable them to discharge their duties efficiently.

When they are not properly motivated there is the likelihood that they would become vulnerable to compromise. Indeed, an assessment of the pattern of the jailbreaks, especially the recent ones, pointed to a strong indication of possible complicity or deliberate negligence by prison officials. It is obvious that no such major jailbreak could have occurred without the knowledge and cooperation of prison officials.

One of those who hold strongly to this view is the governor of Kogi State, Mallam Yahaya Bello, who has called on the federal government to set up a commission of inquiring to investigate the circumstances surrounding the Koton Karfe jailbreak. The governor who visited the prison shortly after the incident was of the opinion that the jailbreak could not have succeeded if the prison officials were not complicit. In a clear move that indicated the willingness of the administration to take necessary corrective measures against the incessant jailbreaks, the board of Customs, immigration, Prison and Civil Defence, after its emergency meeting on August 11, 2016, announced the dismissal of 23 prison officials from services for their suspected role in the saga.

The decision to dismiss the affected officers was taken after a thorough investigation of the incidents. Equally, 11 prison officials at Nsukka prison have been sent on suspension pending the outcome of investigation on their role in the jailbreak. Similarly, the new Controller- General of Prison, Ahmed Ja’faru, also convened an emergency meeting with command officers and officers- in- charge of prison in the country to assess the incident and map out a comprehensive strategy to forestall future occurrence. The prison boss while assuring the officers of the commitment of his administration to encourage and motivate those who were ready to work hard, he made it clear that those who were found wanting would not be spared. These are very commendable proactive measures, but a lot more needs to be done.

Our prison system requires total overhaul and reform to bring it in line with the global standard. It must however be acknowledged that the task is quite enormous considering the long period of degradation in our prison system. The incessant jailbreaks in recent times are product of many years of neglect. If necessary attention had been given to our prisons by recognising the strategic position they occupy in our criminal justice system, we would not have been in this mess.

APART FROM INFRASTRUCTURAL DECAY, THERE IS THE PROBLEM OF ACCOMMODATION. AVAILABLE RECORDS SHOWED THAT ALL THE PRISONS IN THE COUNTRY HAVE BEEN STRETCHED BEYOND THEIR CAPACITY. THE KUJE MEDIUM PRISON, WHICH HAS CAPACITY FOR ABOUT 500 INMATES, IS NOW HARBOURING NEARLY 1,000 INMATES