Following what has been described as incessant jailbreaks, the federal government has threatened to sanction state controllers or officers in charge of any prison involved in any incident of jailbreak or escape of inmates in any part of the country.
Minister of Interior, Lt-Gen Abudulhaman Dambazau (Rtd), who spoke before an interactive parley with top officers of the Nigeria Prisons Service (NPS) including state controllers and senior prison officers in Abuja, warned that government will no longer tolerate any form of negligence to duty.
Dambazau, however, blamed the incident on several teething challenges.
Admitting that government is aware of the challenges like congestion, negligence and structural deficiency confronting the prison services, the minister said: “You are here to interact with the Controller-General of Prison on an issue that is very important in our minds.
“I know the significance of prison service as a custodian of inmates. You also have the responsibility to rehabilitate those in custody. That is why this meeting has become important to know how to tackle the problem of the incessant prison escapes of inmates in the last two months.
“The first at the Kuje Prison and another at the Koton Karfe Prison, Kogi State. This is certainly not good news at all. We need to find a way to deal with this incidents. I am aware that some of these prison have structural problem. Even the most recent ones are not constructed to standard. Secondly, I am also aware of the fact that quite few of them are very old.
“I have visited many of them and I know that few of them are as old as century like the Kano Prison, more than 100 years old. I am also aware that the number of inmates has increased without improving the facilities.
“Despite all these problems, I am aware that there are somethings very fundamental that rest on your shoulders. There are those things you know must be done to ensure the security of prisons. They include: patrolling the prisons, manning the towers, keeping records, knowing the numbers of prisoners you have.
“I want to let you know that this administration won’t tolerate illegality. Anybody that has the responsibility of looking after the prisons must hold that responsibility squarely because you will be held responsible for anything that happens and sometimes the consequences may not be something you expect. It is very important that you do what is right.”
The Controller-General of Prisons, Jafa’aru Ahmed, expressed displeasure over the incessant jailbreaks, adding that the meeting was called to brainstorm on curbing it.
Giving an update on the recent jail break at Koton Karfe Prison, Ahmed said: “Let me tell you that so far, seven out of the 13 escapees have been recaptured and we are hoping to get all of them back.”