The release of 96 inmates in a 100-year-old prison in Kaduna State by Governor Nasir el-Rufai is a first step in reforming the penitentiar
It was understandable that 96 inmates of Kaduna Convict Prison or KCP yelled and jumped for joy when Governor Nasir el-Rufai granted them amnesty. They were among 800 awaiting trial at the 100-year-old jail, many of them serving more than the years of their sentence had they been tried and convicted. The joy of freedom from captivity and getting on with their lives came naturally.
There are more fundamental reasons to celebrate the governor’s gesture. One, it was a first step towards freeing up space in the prison so that it can resume offering reformatory services conceived by the colonialists. The KCP, established in 1915, is one of the few jails in the country where inmates could study and learn skills but that reformatory aspect has suffered owing, among other reasons, to overcrowding. One hundred years ago, the KCP inmate accommodation capacity was 547. That has been overstretched to more than 1000.
Another reason to applaud the El-Rufai amnesty is the sense of justice for the inmates and correcting the error of people who kept the awaiting-trial detainees longer than was necessary. Now, there is hope for the 704 still behind bars.
The Nation gathered that the Kaduna Convict Prison has study centres of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) in which two of its inmates are running degree programmes in Political Science and Computer Science. In addition, the prison has 11 training workshops, including leather works, tailoring, knitting, hair-dressing, carpentry, welding, plumbing and laundry, among others. But all the training centres are hamstrung by inadequate training materials and lack of space, thanks to the large number of inmates awaiting trial.
It was against this backdrop that Governor el-Rufai visited the prison and released the 96 inmates.
Even though, journalists were not allowed to speak to the inmates, those released were seen jubilating as they were handed their release letters.
There was no doubt that el-Rufai’s visit brought joy to the inmates, especially those released and gave hope of nearest future freedom to the remaining inmates.
The prisoners screamed his name from their cells as he waved at them and smiled. Some of the inmates were believed to have been in the prison for years for committing different offences ranging from murder, theft, armed robbery, rape and minor offences such as debt and fighting.
Those in the governor’s entourage, including the media, were amazed to hear the prisoners shouting the governor’s campaign nickname “Mai Rusau” meaning, demolition master.
Although El-Rufai was not the first governor to visit the old prison, his call surprised the inmates and the prison authorities.
In his address he described as injustice, the practice of keeping awaiting trial inmates on minor offences in the prison for too long.
According to him, his visit to the prison was informed by the briefing of the state Controller of Prison as well as President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive to all governors to look into ways of decongesting the prisons.
El-Rufai said after touring the congested prison that he will work together with the prison authorities to revive the facilities.
He said, “We are particularly interested in improving the state of training and vocational facilities within the prisons and expand that to outside the prison. We believe acquisition of skills is very important, not only to create jobs but also to reduce the rate of crime.
“It is injustice for a person to be kept for a long time in the prison on a minor offence and awaiting trial.”
Earlier, the State Controller of Prisons, Abubakar Garba told el-Rufai of the challenges facing the inmates, urging him to address them.
He said, “We are happy with this visit by the new Kaduna State governor because the challenges facing our inmates are enormous. Particularly, the issue of congestion is what we would like you to look into.
“This is because the prison which was built in 1915 was to house about 547 inmates but presently, we have about 1000 inmates with majority awaiting trials, including 114 condemned criminals, with 11 of them being indigenes of Kaduna State including a female.”
The Prison Controller also sought assistance in logistics, saying that the prison has only two functional vans for moving inmates, two others grounded.
“This poses as great threat on the citizens of the state since too many inmates are conveyed at a time to and from courts, hence exposing them to attacks by unsuspecting hoodlums.”
He also appealed to the governor to assist the inmates in the area of rehabilitation through skill and vocational training, saying some of the training equipment in their workshop are outdated.
On the peace in the prison, the Controller said they have enjoyed relatives peace for a long time.
Meanwhile, the Chief Judge, Justice Tanimu Zailani in his brief remarks gave assurance that the judiciary will cooperate with the state executive to actualise its objectives of decongesting all prisons in Kaduna State.
y institution, reports ABDULGAFAR ALABELEWE
