Posted by The Port Harcourt Telegraph on
The Presidential Panel on the Jailbreak incidents at Port Harcourt and Ogwashi Ukwu Prisons has arrived Port Harcourt the Rivers State capital to commence its public sitting at the old Court of Appeal building in Port Harcourt.
The Presidential Panel on the Jailbreak incidents at Port Harcourt and Ogwashi Ukwu Prisons has arrived Port Harcourt the Rivers State capital to commence its public sitting at the old Court of Appeal building in Port Harcourt.
Speaking during a courtesy visit on Governor Odili a t Government House, Port Harcourt the Chairman of the Panel, Senator Mrs Stella Omu said the Panel would be in the State for about three weeks conducting interviews with inmates of the Port Harcourt Prisons and other members of the public on the incident which led to the jailbreak at the prison.
Senator Omu told the Governor that the mandate of the Panel as given by President Obasanjo following the escape of high risk Prisoners from both prisons was to ascertain the immediate and remote causes of the incident and make recommendations that would assist Government take decisive action on the matter.
She expressed the concern of Government about the security implications of the jailbreaks and the need to restore order, discipline and improve the conditions of prisons in the country .
Mrs Omu reiterated the complimentary roles the Police and the Judiciary could play in the enhancement of the quality of service delivery and in the administration of Prisons in Nigeria.
Senator Omu, a Retired Deputy Comptroller General of Prisons, and presently a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, said the three organisations which make up the Criminal Justice System should be encouraged to effectively discharge their duties including arrest and prosecution of offenders, and reformation, rehabilitation and reintegration of those already convicted.
She noted that the prisons system could not be said to be effective in the face of congestion of inmates and called on stakeholders to assist in decongesting the Port Harcourt Prisons to make it a truly maximum-security prison.
"From all we have seen in Port Harcourt Prison in the last two days, there is need for all stakeholders to assist in the decongestion of the prison to make it a true maximum Security Prison, Mrs Omu stressed".
She thanked the Governor for the hospitality extended to members of her Panel and gave an assurance that the Panel would discharge its assignment satisfactorily.
Responding, Rivers State Governor, Dr Peter Odili who described their assignment as arduous and crucial deplored the state of infrastructure at the Port Harcourt Prisons and observed that the congestion were products of poor infrastructure in the prisons.
"So if you ask my opinion, I will say very clearly that we did not have the right infrastructure", Dr Odili stated, wondering how the facilities in a prison built in 1918 could still be adequate for its purpose in 2005.
Dr Odili opined that with the kind of population growth and the high network of criminals, the nation should confront the situation in our Prisons or provide the right environment for a Maximum Security Prison.
The Governor remarked that to get to the crux of what has gone wrong, a closer look at the conditions of the Prisons, the personnel, the working environment, discipline and welfare must be undertaken.
He queried why inmates in the Prisons are allowed access to GSM phones with which they have contacts with the public, and why some inmates even eat their choice food while in prison, adding that such a system was obviously not in the interest of public security.
He said the State Government has taken a number of measures including the purchase of cars for Judges to enhance Justice Delivery in the state, and called for concerted effort to put the Nigeria Prisons System where it should be.
The State Chief Executive assured the Panel of government supports in the discharge of the assignment in the State.