IN the bleak, windswept landscape of the rapidly swelling Kirikiri Medium and Maximum Prisons and Ikoyi Prisons, they wither. Their looks tell tales of agony. The eyes’ sockets are seemingly loosened. They are the metaphor of lack, the simile of dejection and the apt representation of want. Yet, they just came out of what should be a reformatory centre.
No thanks to overcrowding, caused by the high population of Awaiting Trial Inmates, the Kirikiri Maximum and Medium Prisons and others across the country have become the chambers of horror.
Every day, about 1000 Nigerians are dumped in prisons, remaining there without trial. There are those who have been there for about three years or more without being taken to court for once. Of the 42,000 inmates in the country’s prisons, 34,000 are awaiting trial, according to Minister of Interior Abba Moro. Some believe that the figures may be inaccurate given the country’s poor record-keeping.
Inmates lack enough bed spaces. So, not all enjoy the luxury of sleeping on the bed. Cells are unclean and without proper ventilation. Diseases are widespread. The government does not perform its role of meeting the daily needs of prisoners, leaving missionary bodies, charity groups and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) to fill the gaps.
The prisons provide for inmates to engage in vocations such as carpentry, tailoring and so on. But not all can benefit from these. Inmates awaiting trial are excluded. They are made to pass time in prisons with nothing to show for it. Some of them have been in detention for much longer than the sentence they would have got on conviction. Luck ran the way of many of them on September 18 and December 11, when the Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Ayotunde Phillips, visited the Kirikiri Maximum and Medium Prisons.
On December 11, the inmates that welcomed the chief judge were in a somber mood and moving about almost in a zombie-like way. Security in and around the two prisons were tensed and the atmosphere was charged.
At the end of that visit, 233 awaiting trial inmates, most of them stern-looking, were granted freedom, with Justice Phillips admonishing them to go and sin no more.
The visit made to Ikoyi Prison on Tuesday, December 11, 2012 was a total opposite to the situation at Kirikiri. But for the high walls, the prison community could pass for a fortified family compound, well kept and organised, with fresh air and very clean inmates. Among them, sporting a clean white T-shirt, adorning a well-combed afro hair style and clutching tightly to his Holy Bible, was Akolade Arowolo, a self-proclaimed Youth Pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), facing a one-count charge of murder for allegedly killing his banker wife, Titilayo.
The Chief Judge and her entourage of judges of the State High Courts and magistrates of the lower courts, were welcomed into the prison chapel with the sound of gospel and hip-pop music by the happy inmates. Unlike Kirikiri Prisons where prisons officials were overzealous and made deliberate attempt to impress the chief judge, the inmates and prison officials in Ikoyi were relaxed and wore a happy look, maybe a reflection of their location in the highbrow Ikoyi.
Conspicuously displayed at the entrance of the beautifully decorated chapel was a banner that read: “We the entire inmates welcome our dear mother, Honorable Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Ayotunde Phillips, and her entourage to Ikoyi correctional centre, the genuine home of reformation”.
The Ikoyi Prisons musical group, dressed in a blue T-shirt over a pair of jeans trousers welcomed Justice Phillips into the auditorium of the prison with their brake-dancing steps and were chorusing “Hallelluyah! Halleluyah!! Halleluyah!!! Freedom is what we need, Freedom is what we want”.
The chief judge was so much attracted to their lyrics and brake dance that she told them much afterwards that she would have loved to join them but for being of old age and that she could not match their brake dance steps. “I like your music. It is only that I am too old now. I would have joined you on the dancing floor,” she said.
No doubt, many of the inmates at the Ikoyi Prisons in Lagos had looked forward to spending the Christmas behind bars and were not prepared for the freedom that came with the visit of the Chief Judge, which gave them the opportunity of a second chance to live a free life. Many could not believe their ears when they were called out in batches and were told that they had been set free and to “go and sin no more”.
A total of 46 inmates of different age groups prostrated in appreciation to the Lagos Chief Judge for granting them their freedom from the Ikoyi Prisons. To many of them, freedom had remained an illusion for many years, especially for the elderly ones, having spent an upward of three years and above behind bars for offences they claimed they never committed. Their joy new no bounds as their names were called and in realisation of the fact that they are no longer prisoners. One could feel the love that existed between the inmates and the prison officials as they congratulate each other over the development.
No wonder the Deputy Comptroller of the prison, Mr. Emmanuel Bamidele, was quick to explain that in the prison yard, they do not refer to them as “inmates” but that they call themselves “team mates”, the awaiting trials, convicts and officials alike, adding that this had helped to build and entrench love.
Justice Phillips told those who regained their freedom that the gesture was in fulfillment of the promise she made during her visit to Kirikiri to visit the prisons more frequently to set free those deserving it and have stayed beyond the time that was necessary without being arraigned.
According to her, the release of the inmates is in line with her statutory duty to decongest the prisons. She subsequently released the inmates who were all on the awaiting trial list in pursuant of the powers conferred on her under Section 1 (1) of the Criminal Justice Release from Custody Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2007.
The release of the 46 inmates brought to 279, the number of awaiting trials so far set free by Justice Phillips as the Lagos Chief Judge. She admonished the freed inmates to be of good behaviour henceforth and to “sin no more. I have a magnetic and very retentive memory. So, I would remember any of you if I come across your name again. You have been given a second chance.”
The stories told by the freed inmates show that the prisons have become homes to the guilty and the innocent.
One of the freed inmates, Isiaka Sule, was too happy to express himself coherently. He explained that he was arrested by the police in May 2009 while riding his okada on the allegation that he was an armed robber and was arraigned before the Ebutte Metta Magistrate’s Court 2 in the same month but was never taken to court for trial. Sule reiterated that he never committed the said offence but was just doing his job when he was arrested.
The story was not much different for 53-year-old Calistus Ogala from Kogi State. He said he was arrested because a friend who borrowed his car used it to carry stolen goods. Ogala was arrested in 2009 and arraigned before the Yaba Magistrate’s Court but was never taken to court for trial after he was remanded.
He explained that his friend who committed the offence was not arrested and had never been to visit him. He added that the only person that comes to see him is his wife who does not even know he will be released that day.
Omoniyi Sule, 24, was arrested by the police since May 2009 in Ikotun on allegation of murder, an allegation he denied vehemently. “I feel very happy that I am leaving this place. I didn’t expect that I am ever going to leave this place. I thank God for this wonderful gift”, he said. Sule who learnt electronics while in prison, said he would put the skill so acquired into use and earn a living.
Sixty-year-old Abdulrahman Adamu said he was selling tomatoes and pepper at Mile 12 before he was arrested in 2008 for alleged murder. He said he was never taken to any court for trial since his arrest. Speaking through an interpreter, Adamu said he has never killed in his life and cannot understand why the police arrested him for the offence. He thanked Allah for his release and for using the Chief Judge to grant him freedom.
Another lucky inmate is 75-year-old Job Melebe who had thought he would spend the rest of his life behind bars. Melebe, an Ijaw man, said he was remanded in prison in the year 2008 over an Awori kingship tussle at a time two brothers were fighting for the position of the kingship at Awori area of Lagos. He claimed to be coming back from the farm when some policemen saw him and ran after him. Without an explanation of what he did, he found himself remanded in prison custody. He added that it was while he was in the prison that he was informed that he killed somebody. He said since 2008, that he was in the Prison custody, he was not taken to court for trial. He expressed his gratitude to God for perfecting his freedom, stating: “I am very happy to be released today.”
Another inmate, 34-year-old Yusuf Oyekunle also had a similar case of murder and has been in the prison since March 2008. According to him, he had a fight with his friend who fell down and people called the police who arrested him without allowing him to state his case.
The incident, he said, happened at Sango-Ota, adding that since he was arrested and taken to the prison custody, he has not been arraigned before any court for trial.
According to him, during his stay in prison, he had learnt how to make liquid soap and disinfectant, some of which were displayed during the CJ’s visit. He said he has learnt his lesson and will never fight anyone again, adding that he will utilise his knowledge of the trade he learnt while in prison to make a better life for himself.
Nsikak Solomon, 34, was arrested in September 2007 for alleged armed robbery. He denied the offence. He said he was first taken to Ikoyi Police Station from where he was moved to Panti , Yaba, before being returned to Ikoyi Prisons. Solomon, who claimed to be a builder, said he was not taken before any court since arrest. “But today, I feel very happy. My God who I served has vindicated me”, he said.
A vulcanizer, Kazeem Oladosu, 29, also received the grace of a second chance. He explained that he was going home after closing from work when he was apprehended by some boys, who claimed that he collected handsets from them and before he knew it, they started beating him and took him to the police station where they made a statement that he collected their handsets at gun point. He said all attempts to state his own story to the police failed. According to him, the next day, they called his aunty and took him straight to Panti, Yaba, and from there, he was taken to the court and was accused of stealing jewelries, handsets and cars. He stated that he has been in the prison custody since on the 20th of January 2009 and none of his family members ever came to see him throughout his stay in the prison and are not even aware of his release.
He said he is very happy to have been released, adding that he was going to turn a new leave and also to be a good citizen in his community.
The September 18 Group
The experiences of the group freed on September 18 bear a lot of semblance to the December 11 Group. Betran Anwagu was in his shop around CMS Bus Stop, Lagos Island, in 2005 when he had a misunderstanding with another man and had the story of his life rewritten . Dennis Etim was arrested for robbery, instead of fighting in 2010. Sanni Musa, a trader at the Mile 12 Market, Ketu, on the outskirts of Lagos, was arrested in place of a suspected armed robber in June 2005. And Ifeanyi Nwaeze, an ex-commercial bus driver from Delta State, was accused of robbing someone in Egbeda, on the outskirts of Lagos. They were all kept in a prison cell alongside hardened criminals.
Anambra State-born Anwagu, 54, was arrested on March 9, 2005.
He said: “Life there was difficult. The food we were given here was not good. Though we were being fed thrice a day, the food was nothing, especially the soup. Those that had money used it to cook. Someone like me, I didn’t like the food I was served a night before I was released. So, I went to bed hungry. Before I came to prison, I was not married. The woman I was planning to marry, I haven’t seen her since this thing happened to me. “
Anwagu found himself in prison for street-fighting. According to him, a man had come to him at CMS Bus Stop, Lagos Island, where he was selling provisions. He claimed to have fought him.
Anwagu, who lost the opportunity of getting married to his heartthrob as a result of his arrest, said he was first taken to the Police Headquarters Annex (Lion Building) in Lagos.
“Two hours later, the police came back with two more people and the following morning, the four of us were taken before the DPO as those found on the crime scene. That very morning, we were charged with armed robbery and remanded at Panti and later we were brought to Kirikiri.”
The unfairness of the justice system was corroborated by an ex-inmate, Etim, 39. The father of four said he had a fight with somebody with whom he had a business transaction. He claimed that in the course of the fight, the other man’s N15,000 got missing and he was arrested for robbery, instead of fighting. That was in 2010.
Etim, who spent two years and nine months in prison, alleged that the police officer, who investigated the matter, asked his mother to bring N250,000 to set him free.
He said: “ The IPO asked me to bring N250,000 so that he can set me free. He negotiated the price with my mum, then later on that day when he wanted to take me to court, he said my mother should bring N20,000 that he will change the robbery case to stealing. Then my mother said ‘no, my son did not steal anything’. So, immediately my mother left that day, he said my mother should come the next morning; it was that very morning he took me to court because my mother came late.”
Like other prisons, Kirikiri is congested. Awaiting Trial Prisoners (ATPs) are more than convicts. For instance, as at September, the Kirikiri Maximum Security Prisons had 1,056 inmates. 763 were awaiting trials. The Medium Security Prison had 2,502 inmates; 2,378 were awaiting trial inmates. 124 were convicts.
Most of the ATPs are in custody for petty offences. Musa, one of those freed by the Lagos chief judge, was a trader at the Mile 12 Market, Ketu, on the outskirts of Lagos. He told The Nation that policemen arrested him in place of a suspected armed robber. That was in June 2005. He said of his seven years in prison: “No enjoyment for life here o. Nothing dey here. If I commot here now, I go go back to my brother where he dey sell market.”
Another beneficiary of Justice Phillips’ gesture, Victor Kapan, was dumped in prison when he was 20. He is now 32.
He said: “I was a motorcycle mechanic until I was brought in here in year 2000. Before then, some boys brought a document that I should help them change it to their own. That was all I know. I keep thanking God that I am still alive till this date because He has given me a second chance and I will never do anything that will bring me to prison again.”
The story of his life has been rewritten. “While I was here, my aunt who used to visit me, died. I also lost my junior brother and senior sister while I was here and I wasn’t allowed to attend their burials. As soon as I leave, I’ll go back to my former job but I will first go and see my aged mother in the village. Then, when God blesses me, I’ll come to worship at the chapel here and visit my brothers.”
Nwaeze wasted five years in Kirikiri. The ex-commercial bus driver from Delta State was accused of robbery.
He said: “I was born September 19 1982. They said that I went and robbed someone in Egbeda. So, they came and arrested me in my house but I didn’t do anything. They took me to the station and I spent six months at the station. While I was there, no one came to make a statement that I actually robbed him. I was taken to a court in Ikeja once and then taken to the Kirikiri Medium Prisons for more than two years before I was brought to the Maximum Prisons.”
His ordeal has made him appreciate God.
“When I was in the free world, I never used to go to church, but I knew I was serving God. But since I came here, I am now serving the living God. Today, I feel a big relief. If my mother hears my voice, she will cry. My sister and I are the only children she has. When I leave, I will go to the East and meet my parents. I can manage some of my father’s property. I don’t want to go back to the life I used to live, living life like tomorrow did not exist. But since I had this problem, none of those ladies I used to waste money on or my so-called friends has come to visit me.”
Henry Odus also benefitted from Justice Phillips’s benevolence. Odus was convicted for murder. He admitted committing the offence, which saw him spending years in prison before the chief judge came to his rescue.
Odus said: “ I was married before I came here with two children. My wife left me and my two children came to visit me once in a while. All I can do now is to have a repentant mind.”
In jail for statements written under duress
But if the words of Williams Owodo, an inmate serving life at the Kirikiri Maximum Prisons, are anything to go by, many of those still at the prisons may not deserve to be there.
He said: “Most of us who were sentenced to death are innocent. And Governor Babatunde Fashola should please look into our case. Our statements were written under duress.”
Morro agrees that the criminal justice system needs overhauling to decongest the prisons and prevent innocent people from languishing in jail without trial.
He said: “To solve this problem would mean a total overhaul and re-planning of the criminal justice administration system. I must state that the job of decongesting the prisons vested in the Justice Ministry has not been really effective. There should be a redesigning to involve the prisons and the supervising ministry and the police and civil society organisations.”
Until then, the population of those awaiting trial will keep rising. It was 30,000 in 2010. Morro said it is now 34,000. What will it be next year?
Making meaning of freedom
Bamidele believes stigmatisation of former prisoners remains a major obstacle and allays the fear of members of the society that those set free would not pose any problem, as they had undergone genuine reformation and rehabilitation process.
“Therefore to settle down and become useful in the society after their release would be easy if society allows them a second chance as they all have a craft that they have learned. Nevertheless, let me assure my lord and other people here that you will never regret the bold and laudable action to be taken today,” he said.
The Deputy Comptroller of Prisons also counselled the freed prison inmates to be of good behaviour henceforth and not to betray the confidence placed in them. In the same vein, he advised the remaining inmates, cautioning them that their good attitude is the only way to ensure a repeat of the Chief Judge’s visit to the prisons.
“To my obedient, tolerant and understanding inmates particularly those that will get freedom today, as you can see and hear, I have vouched for your good behaviour. Therefore never you betray the confidence so that it will not be too long before we get this type of rare opportunity.
“Expectedly, the fear being nursed to set long awaited trial inmates free is as a result of the disappointment and embarrassment they used to cause after being set free thereby increasing crime rate in their immediate environment. But I want to allay that fear and assure you that inmates of Ikoyi Prisons are undergoing genuine reformation and rehabilitation processes.
“A club tagged 3R is actively operating. Therefore to settle down for something meaningful after release may not constitute worry provided society allowed them a second chance.”
A prison psychologist, Mr. Alu Ogbonaya, who coordinates the activities of the 3R Club which focuses on Rehabilitation, Reformation and Recreation, said all Ikoyi inmates have learnt one craft or the other that can grant them a source of livelihood when freed.
He added that the club consists of three groups including the music department and publishing. Alu explained further that the key word in the prison is “I can do it”, adding that none of the inmates that pass through Ikoyi Prisons gets sent back there for any offence when they are freed.
According to him, one of the inmates that just gained his freedom just released an album entitled ‘Be cool’; and some are billed to attend a music school from prison for performing well in a talent hunt show organised for inmates by the House on the Rock Church.
The President of the 3R Club, who is also an inmate, Mr Akintunde Ifenuga, said the reformation process in Ikoyi Prisons, is effective. Ifenuga had been in Ikoyi Prisons since 2009 on an allegation of theft. The court found him guilty of the offence and sentenced him to four years’ imprisonment last year. His sentence will end in March, 2013.
