The Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS) sent over 21,000 offenders for community service in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Mr Ja’afaru Ahmed, the Controller General, disclosed this during the decoration of the Assistant Controller Generals, (ACGs) and Controller of Corrections (CCs) on Monday in Abuja.
He also said that the Federal Government was still taking measures to ensure that custodial centres were decongested across the country.
According to him, the issue of prison congestion has always been utmost in the mind of the Federal Government.
“Steps are being taken by the government to look at those awaiting trial persons and those in jail as this would help in decongesting the correctional service.
“Within the Lockdown, those who violated the Lockdown order by the FG were over 21,000 in FCT alone. They had to do some level of community service within the FCT itself.
“This ordinarily, would have been people that would have been sent into custody for violating the lockdown order but were sentence for community service to decongest the centres.
“This has also helped reduce the numbers of inmates in custodial centres in FCT as those ones were not added to them rather they were sent for community services, ” he said.
The CG said that the issue of over crowding in various custodial centres were addressed by the administration.
He recalled that certain measures were put in place in order to ensure that overcrowding was reduced to a barest minimum.
“That is, there were so many amnesty that were granted to so many of our inmates during this period.
“And there were no admissions also during a certain period until we restored admissions when the State authorities are able to fulfill some of our requirements for admission.
“This was in order to ensure that there is no Covid-19 in any of our custodial Centres nationwide. , ” he said.
In the same vien, Ahmed said that the Minster of Justice and the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami also sent letters to various state governors, urging them on the instructions of the President.
He added that the letters were sent to ensure that state committees on mercy continue to sit and to look at deserving inmates that were due to be released.
“We have also sent list of inmates awaiting trials that have spent 5 years and above to the Minister of Justice and I am sure they have transmitted that to their respective states for them to attend to them.
“So, it is an ongoing process and we hope that with the full implementaion of the NCoS act 2019, especially the non custodian service, we will see a reduced number of inmates because the issue of probation and parole may come into being.
“That is, we will look at certain categories of inmates that were convicted to provide them the opportunity of parole to complete their sentences outside the custodian centers.
“I am sure the court would begin to implement the issue of probation and that means people will no longer be sent to our custodial centres for keep but will go to their homes under certain conditions.
“So let’s be patient with the implementation and I am sure that with time, the number will be reduced to barest minimum, ” he said.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 25 ACGs and 37 Controller of Corrections (CC) were promoted and decorated respectively.
Meanwhile watch this short video and don’t forget to subscribe.
