Predictably, the alarming Kuje prison break is still very much in the news. The chairman of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Correctional Service, Edwin Anayo, said the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) had recaptured 421 inmates who fled the custodial facility in Kuje, but 454 were still at large.
During an oversight visit to the facility on July 14, he said the committee had summoned Minister of Interior Rauf Aregbesola and Comptroller-General of the NCoS Haliru Nababa to appear before it following the terrorist attack on the Kuje Custodial Centre, Abuja, on the night of July 5. According to him, about 879 inmates escaped that night. The committee has also invited the Commander of the Nigerian Army Platoon on duty on the night of the attack, he added.
Many Boko Haram members were among the escapees. The Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) claimed responsibility for the raid on the prison. The release of terrorists by terrorists is disturbing.
Anayo said: “There have been about 10 to 12 attacks on custodial centres. Nigerians are not comfortable.
“In Abuja, nobody walks freely now because of this incident. We have to interact and know the problems, and how we can solve them…The committee is eager to know what transpired here.”
Indeed, Nigerians want to know why the country’s prisons seem so vulnerable. Contradictory responses from two ministers on the Kuje incident have not helped matters. Police Affairs Minister Maigari Dingyadi said the defenders were overpowered because the attackers were more in number and better armed, while Aregbesola said the protectors were enough in number and adequately equipped.
Importantly, the military is investigating the incident. A military source was quoted as saying: “An investigation has commenced to truly understand what happened. It is not just because of the allegations against our soldiers after the attack that has made us do this, this is what we do when we find ourselves in a situation like this when we have our men involved.
“Those on duty that day have been invited for questioning. The military is a well-disciplined organisation; if anyone is found culpable after the investigation, they would be court-martialed.”
It is important to get to the root of the problem. But it is also important to ensure that the Kuje escapees are recaptured. How many of the escapees in the previous incidents have been recaptured?
The Kuje escapees included terrorists, who should not be allowed to enjoy freedom. The other escapees should also be in prison. Recapturing all of them is as vital as knowing how they escaped.