The Minister of Interior, Lieutenant General Abdulrahman Bello Dambazau (rtd), has ordered investigation into reported inmate’s riots at Oke Kura Prison, Ilorin, Kwara State on November 17, 2016 which reportedly claimed six inmates in the condemned Prisoners cell, while many others sustained injuries.
Worried at the ugly development, the minister has directed an Intra-Ministerial Committee to work closely with Nigeria Prisons’ management team with a view to unraveling the remote circumstance surrounding the most unfortunate incident, with a view to avoiding a repeat of such in any of the nation’s penitentiary and to sanction any official found culpable.
The minister has consistently maintained his stance on the need to adhere to the United Nations minimum standards for the treatments and rehabilitation of prison inmates including condemned prisoners in line with the Mandela Rules.
Findings overtime have shown that such riot involving condemned criminals has been as a result of frustration of being on death row for a period of 10yrs or more. Moreover, a prison that was built in 1914, with 121 inmates capacity now accommodating 417, is bound to create difficulties in management. Government has therefore embarked on reconstructing old prisons, while also building new prison facilities in some locations.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that he reassures of his resolved to retooling the country’s prison service, to effectively play its pivotal role of reforming, rehabilitating and reintegrating transformed inmates back to the society in this connection, while ensuring that the rights of prisoners are well protected.
