Fayose blames FG for prison congestion

- Governor Ayodele Fayose accuses security agencies of detaining innocent citizens and perceived opponents of the federal government for flimsy reasons

- Chief Judge of Delta state, Marshal Umukoro, urges state governors to sign the death warrant of inmates on death roll in order to decongest the prisons

Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti state has said the federal government and its law enforcement are to blame for contributing to the problem of prison congestion in Nigeria.

Fayose made the accusation when responding to a letter by the national security adviser, Major General B.M Mungonu (rtd), with reference number NSA/601/A and dated January 16, 2017 on the need‎ to facilitate quick decongestion of Nigerian prisons.

According to Tribune, the NSA in the letter had described the congestion of prisons by awaiting trial suspects and condemned convicts as a major problem bedevilling the ‎administration of Justice in Nigeria.

In reply, Fayose accused security agencies such as police, DSS and the EFCC arresting and detaining innocent citizens and perceived opponents of the federal government for flimsy reasons and on malicious, spurious and unfounded allegations.

Prison congestion has long been a problem of several prisons across the country are facing.

In proffering solution to the issue, the chief Judge of Delta state, Marshal Umukoro, urged state governors to sign the death warrant of inmates on death roll in order to decongest the prisons.

Umukoro who gave the charge on Wednesday, February 1, in Ibadan during the 2017 Aquinas’ Day colloquium of Dominican Institute said signing the death warrant would reduce prison congestion, and served as deterrent to others.

At the lecture titled: The Judiciary and Criminal Justice System: Odds and Ends,” Mr. Umukoro said recent statistics from the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, indicated that no fewer than 1,612 inmates are on death sentence in Nigeria prisons, Premium Times reports.

The chief judge also called for synergy between the police, prisons and the courts in order to boost justice administration.