Community leaders in Anambra State, under the aegis of the Anambra State Association of Town Unions (ASATU), yesterday, marched on the streets of Awka protesting the Federal Government’s relocation of 47 suspected Boko Haram insurgents to Ekwulobia prisons.
They said the development had made investors flee the state.
The protesters chanted war songs and carried placards with inscriptions: “Ekwulobia is not a maximum prison”; “Investors are fleeing”; “Enough is enough, Southeast does not need Boko Haram suspects”; “We will not fold our arms and watch”.
Speaking through its National President, Dr Jude Okolo and Secretary-General, Mr. Peter Nwagu, the group said it received with shock, news of the relocation through the Nigeria Prisons Service.
They said the relocation was not well thought out, ill conceived, ill considered, grossly insensitive, condemnable and unacceptable to Anambra people, nay Southeast region.
“The Ekwulobia prison is a minimum prison located in the middle of a densely populated community and surrounded by tertiary institutions; it is inadequate for such inmates of high security risk.
“There is no military presence in the case of recurrent prison breaks associated with the insurgents.
“This is a flagrant disregard for prison conventions and best practices worldwide. The courts in Anambra have no jurisdiction to try them for offences committed in other states, so why bring them here.
“The continued presence of these inmates is a trauma too many for Ndi Igbo. It is incomprehensive that a minimum security prison in a densely populated community with no military presence should be considered suitable to house these dreaded detainees.
“We urge the Federal Government to rescind this decision and take steps to relocate these detainees from Anambra” they said.
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
Governor Nasir el-Rufai
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.
One hundred inmates of Agodi Prisons Ibadan have been trained in Information Communication Technology (ICT) and other skills.
The inmates were trained in collaboration with Yommyfad Limited in partnership with Annabelle Iremide Foundation.
The initiative, according to the Chief Executive of Yommyfad Limited, Yomi Fadare, was launched in 2013 to allow the prisoners learn good skills.
Fadare said: “Operation empower the Inmates” would soon be extended to other prisons, where inmates would be trained in computer appreciation, computer engineering, tailoring, bead making and shoe making.”
Ayotunde Fatokun, founder of Annabelle Iremide Foundation, said with the support of individuals, they are keeping the vision alive.
“Prison inmates are abandoned and the least considered set of people in the society.
“However, life doesn’t end when you go to prison. You can still make the best out of life after incarceration.”
The Anambra State Chief Judge, Justice Peter Umeadi, at the weekend, freed 41 inmates of Awka prisons, ending his three-day prisons goal delivery.
Before now, he released 13 inmates of Onitsha prisons, released another five on bail and freed one at Ekwulobia prisons in Aguata.
Umeadi’s goal delivery exercise to Anambra prisons began on June 1 in Onitsha and June 3 in Aguata.
“This is but a tip of the iceberg; it is symbolic and to show how vigilant we will be in looking at small issues that pertain to the liberty of individuals. Be assured that this will go a long way in establishing justice.
“We are doing better and now that the new prison at Nnewi has taken off, it has shown its effect. Before now, the Onitsha prison had over 1,000 inmates but it has since dropped to about 757 inmates; this is to show you the new prison’s effect.
“Since we started the reform of the judicial sector, we have stopped trading blames. What we do now is to come together and make sure that things work as it should,” Umeadi said.
The police in Ondo State yesterday paraded two Ekiti jailbreak suspects for robbery.
Banji Adedayo and Tope Daramola were serving time for robbery when they escaped from the Ado-Ekiti Prison on November 30, last year.
The suspects reportedly joined three others to snatch a Toyota Sienna from Remidayo Komolafe in Akure, the state capital, in March.
They also “stole” five phones valued at N200,000.
The police apprehended them through one of the suspects’ girlfriend, who was given a phone by her lover.
Commissioner for Police Isaac Eke, who paraded 28 others, said upon interrogation the suspects confessed that they were among the inmates who escaped from the Ado-Ekiti Prison.
Eke added that the suspects also confessed that they robbed a phone dealer in Igba-Oke, Ifedore Local Government Area.
The commissioner said one of the fleeing gang members, identified as Titus Olorunsola, was shot in the left leg, when he accosted a police inspector during the invasion of their camp in Iro.
Three members of the Odua Peoples Congress (OPC) were paraded for allegedly kidnapping a former OPC governor, Tayo Alao.
Rafiu Alo, Michael Oladun and David Adesemoye were said to have collected a ransom before releasing the victim.
Eke said the suspects made Alao swear an oath that he would not report the incident to the police.
The police boss said he had been pressurised to release the suspects.
NO fewer than 28 Ikoyi Prison Inmates will write the Unified Tetiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) 2015 which holds between today and March 21.
Ikoyi Prisons School Principal Mr Ayodele Obarewo told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos yesterday that the inmates were adequately prepared for the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB)-organised examination.
Obarewo said more inmates had shown interest in furthering their education, after attending several reform programmes at the facility.
The principal said the rise in the number of inmates registered for this year’s UTME was encouraging.
Fourteen wrote the examination last year.
Obarewo said logistics had been finalised for the conduct of the examination, adding: “We have been preparing the candidates to the best of our ability, and they have equally shown determination and focus to excel. Some teachers have been coming around to take them in various subjects as well as computer practice. They have been showing great zeal to write this examination, especially those whose term will soon expire. Such candidates are putting extra efforts to excel, to be able to participate in the post UTME.
“However, we need more equipment in the facility, which will enable us to accommodate more of the inmates, who are interested in furthering their education.”
The school, Obarewo said, has only 10 computers, adding that they are inadequate for the 28 inmates to practice.
“We are, therefore, calling on well-meaning Nigerians to assist, “he said.
NAN reports that over 1. 4 million candidates would write the examination in 400 centres across the country.
The Senator representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) at the National Assembly, Senator Philip Aduda, has donated food and home items to inmates of Kuje Prison.
Some of the items donated to the prison inmates include mattresses, bags of rice, mats, slippers, bags of salt, sugar, while others are grinding machines, musical instrument, sowing machines, public address systems and some cash donation.
Aduda who said the gesture was aimed at catering for the vulnerable, the poor and the needy in the FCT, stated that, he was happy to have the privilege to serve the poor, most of whom through no fault of theirs find themselves in the situation they are in.
The FCT senator said he went through rough times in life, that was why he put himself in the position of the less privilege, in order to understand their plights, noting that he lost his mother, leaving his father with the task of bringing them up alone.
Aduda added that he saw poverty in all its ramification, that he understands what it means to be in want, pointing out that, some of the poor people presently needs counseling, that he was glad that his experience has helped to inspire some of them.
He urged the public to give generously to the cause of the needy, adding, no amount is too small to assist the poor.
Senator Aduda also facilitated the release of 40 inmates who are awaiting trial and other minor offenses.
Receiving the items, the Controller of Kuje Prisons, Mr. Suraju Olarinde said prison is a capital intensive all over the world.
He expressed gratitude to Aduda for considering them among the numerous prisons to benefit from his kind gesture.
Also, Venerable Irewa Isaiah of Anglican Communion Chaplain of Kuje Prisons Chaplaincy expressed solidarity in the transformation agenda of Mr. President, Goodluck Jonathan and encouraged him to continue in the great work of repositioning the nation.
He thanked the senator for his collaborative and laudable gesture, thereby prayed for God’s blessings, love, wisdom and strength to enable them achieve more for themselves and the church.
The wife of Anambra State Governor, Mrs. Ebelechukwu Obiano, has visited prisons to celebrate Christmas with the inmates and encourage them to be reformed.
The prisons visited included the ones in Onitsha, Aguata and Amawbia. She also visited the Daughter of Charity Orphanage Home at Fegge, Onitsha.
Mrs. Obiano told the inmates that as a mother, she brought a message of love “because Christmas is a celebration meant to be shared with loved ones, especially those restricted by circumstances.”
Said she: “I came to celebrate with you because as the wife of the governor, I’m privileged to be the mother of all in the state. I see you as an important set of that one big family. The fact that you are here does not mean you cannot come out reformed, better than others and contribute to the progress of our state.
“Always remember that you are in prison to be reformed and rehabilitated. “I bet, one of you may even turnout to be the governor one day. But for this to happen, you have to change and give your life to Christ.
“I will always remember you in my prayers and I want you to also pray to God to change you.”
The governor’s wife decried the large number of inmates awaiting trial. She assured that she would inform her husband, who would liaise with the authorities to ensure this was corrected.
The Assistant Controller of Amawbia Prisons, Mr. Chris Akabueze, told her that the inmates were happy to receive her.
“You can’t believe that some have not eaten because they are waiting for you. “We are happy that you came. We need your assistance. We want our pumping machine to be repaired. We will also be happy if the fees of the inmates, who want to write the Junior School Certificate Examinations (JSCE), conducted by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), are paid.”
The Assistant Controller of Onitsha Prisons, Mr. Felix Ezengwo, thanked Mrs. Obiano for the love showered on the inmates and urged her not to relent.
She donated items including one cow, bags of rice, noodles, tubers of yam, beverages, soap and detergents to each facility.
For no fault of theirs, they find themselves behind bars, alongside their mothers. Children born to prison inmates often have certain basic rights and comforts cut off simply by their circumstances. Organisations such as the Victorine Home for Children were established to restore some of those abridged rights such as right to proper care and education, among others.
It is three years now since the Victorine Home has been nurturing children born to people behind bars and other needy kids. Their third Annual General Meeting of the organisation attracted many philanthropists who are equally committed to the welfare of the less-privileged.
And it was just as well that at the AGM, more help came for the children whose mothers are prisoners or dead or facing one challenge or another.
The Victorine Home was established in 2012 by selected individuals to cater for the less privilege children. Some of its members are catholic worshippers.
Those whose mothers are incapacitated were not left out. Women who were convicted while in pregnancy also had their children picked up.
When a woman is sentenced to prison, the innocent child sadly partakes in the punishment, and are thus denied good motherly care. Those who also put to bed while serving jail term easily get attention of the Home. It was all a mission to care.
A visit to the home revealed that the children were as little as two years old. Some could hardly talk while others were excited to welcome the unexpected strangers. They were furnished with all manners of gift. Already, the kids had different toys either purchased by the management or presented by humanitarians. So they enjoyed their day largely dependent on good Samaritans.
The 2014 winner of Miss Aso, Ogenna Ekwubir, during her visit to the kids, shared her compassion alongside her team. She spent almost the entire evening playing with the less-privileged. They took pictures and had fun. The kids had another opportunity to play with an outsider. Their morale clearly was boosted having a considerable sense of belonging.
The expression on their faces told it all. Immediately they saw the goodies, they were filled with enthusiasm, jumping with full excitement.
Eventually, the kids were presented with food items such as bags of rice, garri, tubers of yam, groundnut oil and toiletries, among other consumables.
Ekwubiri narrated why she visited the home. She said it was her vision to help the needy at any opportunity, saying, it is part of her empowerment pet project. The beauty pageant disclosed that the mother of the children should have something to live on, upon gaining their freedom from the prison. People are moved to action based on different variables. But she expressed how she was emotionally touched when she heard that the concerned children have their parents either in the prison or demised.
According to her, after the imprisoned mothers have been reintegrated into the society, her initiative would provide further assistance especially in terms of empowerment through agriculture. she said the initiative already got supports from development partners while other government institutions such as Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
“They deserve to be assisted when they get their freedom. It is only when they have something doing that they will be able to cater for these kids. So it’s important other Nigerians show love to these kids. It is our hope that with our programme, their mothers would have better chance to take care of themselves and the children. In fact, that is why we are partnering with the federal ministry of women and social development to further get to the grassroots.”
In a chat with Matron of the Home, Sr. Jovita Nkem Nzeduru, it was discovered 20 children had left the home to meet their parent while 14 others are currently under tutelage of the home. She said the children are mostly reintegrated back into the society after being offered the needed care. It was gathered that a child recently got scholarship in one of the private schools in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
President of the Victorine Home, Okechukwu Onyejuwa told Abuja Review activities of the home centred on children whose mothers are in prison. He said the Home absorb children from the least age of one to about four years. “When these women delivered while in prison, the children are taken out of the prison and given best treatment the foundation can offer.”
“We cater for them, put them in school and later reunite them with the mother when they are released. Some of them don’t even want to go back again because they are offered best treatment. The children don’t know religion; it cuts across religion and denominations,” he said.
Onyejuwa went further to explain how medical doctors showed their kindness by offering free medical care to the children. The same also applied to pharmacists and other medical officials. He narrated how the kids were made to experience what a normal child should enjoy while growing up. “They go to party. They attend church services, go to school and enjoy life just like every other kid. Perhaps that’s why they often feel reluctant to go back to their parent when necessary.”
It was eventually gartered during the AGM that the home made N2 million as income while N13.4 million was made in 2013 accounting year. Though, the entire income was not in cash but some were quantified at market value. It had a physical cash of about N2.9 million in 2013 and made an overall running cost of N8.4 million for the year.
The home appealed to generous Nigerians to support the vision by transforming lives of the under privilege children in the home and country at large.
Law and mental health experts have advocated a review of the criminal justice system, policy change by the government and attitudinal modification by the people to reverse the current plight of prison inmates with mental disorder.
They observed that, not only was extant mental health laws archaic, the criminal justice system, government’s underfunding and the unfriendly disposition of the society do not secure the rights of mentally ill prisoners.
The experts spoke in Abuja at a two-day national workshop on: “Mental health and justice in Nigeria: Strategies for effective and humane management of prisoners with mental health challenges,” organized by the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria (LACN), with supports from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the European Union (EU).
Speakers included the Minster for Justice and Attorney General of Federation (AGF) Mohammed Adoke (SAN), Chairman, LACN, Bolaji Ayorinde (SAN), Director General, LACN, Mrs Joy Bob-Manuel, Acting Controller General of Prisons, Aminu Sule, a London-based Psychiatrist, Dr. Akintunde Akinwunmi and Dr Uju Agomoh of the Prisoners Rehabilitation and Welfare Action (PRAWA).
Adoke faulted the current arrangement which give scant regard to the interest and rights of mentally ill offenders, while Ayorinde suggested a review of the current trial procedure to ensure that the mental state of any offender was determined before he or she is subjected to trial.
Mrs Bob-Manuel, Sule and Akinwunmi suggested the review of existing legislature, provision of adequate funding for the maintenance of prison inmates who are suffering from mental disorder. The population of prisoners with mental health challenges is currently put at about 150 nationwide.
Adoke, represented by a Senior Special Assistant, Adebola Odugbesan called for the establishment of special courts for the trial of mentally ill suspects. Ayorinde, represented by Okey Akobono regretted the current plight of prisoners with mental health challenge.
Mrs. Bob-Manuel, who faulted the current practice where only relatives of mentally ill prisoners were empowered to bear the cost of conveying such persons to asylum, called for more favourable policies from all levels of government to ensure that mentally ill inmates were well catered for.
She noted that in most cases the relatives a mentally ill inmate, who the law empowered to fund the transportation of the sick prisoner, are generally poor and unwilling to be seen with a person of unsound mind due to social stigmas.
Sule, who noted an increase in the population of prisoners with mental health challenge, said new mental health legislation was necessary to ensure adequate protection, rehabilitation and re-integration of mentally ill persons in the country.
“Mental health is neither by choice nor a crime. As their human right, it is the duty of the state to provide adequate care for such individuals, not punishment. We can no longer afford to look the other way even as the World Health Organisation warns that there is a growing global burden of mental disorders,” Sule said in a speech read on his behalf by Peter Ekpendo.
Sule called for the inclusion of mental disorder treatment and management in the primary healthcare system to ensure that freed inmates, who suffer from mental health challenge could easily access care. He suggested enhanced training of mental health professionals to bridge the current gap in the availability of mental health experts in the country.
Dr. Akinwunmi observed that recent studies in the country have shown a prevalence rate of about 12 per cent in the general population and up to 34 per cent in the prison population, and argued that like every individual, people with mental disorder were entitled to the right to fair trial.
He contended that the existing mental health law, inherited from the colonialists, was inadequate in the face of current mental health challenges. He urged the National Assembly to pass into law before the end of their tenure, the Mental Health Bill submitted to the Legislature since 2004.
Dr Agomoh said the workshop was intended to address the current plight of mentally ill inmates, which results mainly from factors within and outside the criminal justice system, which are often caused by corruption, negative stigmatisation, poor legislative framework and policy, and lack awareness and skills in the treatment of persons with mental health challenge.
As a way out, she advocated the development of an effective framework to guide to processing and management of mentally disabled persons within the criminal justice system, including the provision of appropriate mechanism for their transfer to hospitals.
To achieve this, she noted, requires the review of existing legislation and ensuring that the protection of the rights of mentally ill inmates becomes an acceptable social norm, not an exception to the rule.
Dr Agomoh noted that the nation’s prison system was ill-equipped to provide appropriate treatment for the mentally disabled population of inmates and called for enhanced collaboration among relevant agencies to ensure a well-coordinated, humane and effective treatment of mentally ill prisoners within the criminal justice system and the community.
