The Nigerian Correctional Service ,NCoS, said no fewer than 53, 836 inmates inmates in the 253 the correctional centres nationwide are awaiting trial as at Dec,18.
Assistant Controller of Corrections , ACC, Abubakar Umar, the agency’s spokesperson, told reporters in Abuja on Thursday.
Umar stated that, there were 77,849 prisoners nationwide during the review period, broken down by conviction and those awaiting trial.
He added that there were 24, 013 convicts overall, with 23,569 male convicts and 444 female convicts, respectively, making up the number of convicted prisoners.
Statistics shows that, 31% of prisoners in Custodial Centers are convicted of a crime, while 69% of inmates are genuinely awaiting trial.
Umar said that, one of the service’s problems was the deterioration of the facilities used for custody, which led to crowded and confined areas inside the centers.
In order to relieve congestion in the current centers, he claimed that the government has recently built 3,000 ultramodern additional custodial facilities throughout the six geopolitical zones.
He said the initiative would improve the welfare and health of the prisoners while also aiding in the decongestion of the facilities.
“That of Kano has been inaugurated, and we anticipate the remaining facilities under construction to be completed quickly,” he stated.
He continued, “The ongoing centers in Abuja and Portharcourt had reached completion stages and would soon be inaugurated.”
He expressed gratitude to the Federal Government for providing N585 million to settle prisoner fines in an effort to reduce the number of inmates incarcerated nationwide.
He also praised the federal government’s recent efforts to free 4,068 prisoners serving varying sentences.
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