- Tinubu approves relocation of 29 custodial centres due to urbanization.
- New vehicles and security booths deployed to enhance inmate transportation.
- 66% of Nigeria’s prison population consists of awaiting trial detainees.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the relocation of 29 custodial centres across Nigeria due to increasing urbanization. Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this on Friday in Abuja while commissioning 39 mini green maria vehicles for inmate transport and five bullet-resistant guard booths at the Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS) headquarters.
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EKO HOT BLOG reports that Tunji-Ojo emphasized that some custodial facilities are poorly located, including those near government houses, markets, and private residences, necessitating their relocation. He also announced plans for a paramilitary academy, stating that such careers should be seen as professional aspirations rather than poverty alleviation programs. The academy, modeled after the Police Academy and the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), will be a degree-awarding institution aimed at training young Nigerians for paramilitary service.
Meanwhile, Acting Controller General of Corrections, Sylvester Ndidi Nwakuche, stated that the newly acquired 39 vehicles would enhance the safe and efficient transportation of inmates to and from courts. He highlighted that five bullet-resistant guard booths had been strategically deployed to high-risk custodial centres, including those in Abuja, Kuje, Port Harcourt, Kano, and Lagos. The booths, built by a Lagos-based company, EPAIL, are equipped with long-range surveillance and are resistant to dynamites and heavy ammunition.
The acquisition of these security measures aims to address the rising challenges in the correctional system, particularly the transportation of awaiting trial persons (ATP). Nwakuche revealed that Nigeria’s inmate population stands at 80,066, with 53,225 (66%) being pretrial detainees. He stressed that improving inmate transportation would help tackle the issue of prolonged pretrial detention.
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