The Prisoners’ Rehabilitation and Welfare Action (PRAWA) has donated a virtual platform where inmates can interact with their families and lawyers seamlessly due to COVID-19 pandemic.
The Executive Director, PRAWA, Dr Uju Agomoh, said this during the presentation of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other materials to the service.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that materials donated were; 17 Computers, 17 mobile phones and 17 modem for virtual visitation, 50,000 pieces of face masks.
Also donated were, 1000 face shields for protection of inmates and correctional officers, 47 spraying cans for disinfection of custodial centres as well as 100 pedal operated water tanks for hand washing.
Agomoh said that virtual visitation became imperative given the restrictions placed on physical visits to the correctional facilities by the Federal Government.
According to her, as a proactive and technology driven organisation, we are seeking to bridge the gap occasioned by this restriction.
“This initiative is going to run as a pilot scheme in 17 correctional facilities across the federation.
“And this will in no small way ameliorate the obvious plight of inmates that this restriction has affected in many ways.
“To cushion the heavy burden of internet cost, we shall be providing 6 months free internet connectivity to the correctional centers where this technology will be deployed, to enable this initiative take off without hitches.
“We will also be training correctional staff that will drive this process.
“We are grateful to our technical partners, Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) for sponsoring this project and being part of this historic event which is the first of its kind in Nigeria, ” she said.
Agomoh said that PRAWA had been committed to promoting institutional reforms, creating access to justice, rehabilitation, and social development for offenders, ex-offenders, torture victims and youths at risk.
She said that even during this deadly COVID-19 pandemic, the resolve had not wained, rather it had continued to seek more improved ways.
This she said, was to serve the correctional community and to support the service to effectively discharge its duties.
The Controller General, Nigerian Correctional Service (NCos) Mr Ja’afaru Ahmed,, assured that the materials donated would go a long way to keeping the virus away from custodial centres.
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