* As NCoS elevates 70 officers
The federal government has ordered the decongestion of correctional facilities immediately in the federation in line with the Nigerian Correctional Services Act 2019, to reduce overcrowding.
The Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, gave the order on the decoration of 13 newly promoted Assistant Controller Generals, (ACGs), and 57 Controllers of the service and commissioning of 30 operational vehicles yesterday in Abuja.
The minister said the NCoS should discuss with the state government how to decommission the facility as there has been an increase in incarceration in recent times and three-fourths of the inmates are being held awaiting trial.
Represented by the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Interior, Dr. Shuaib Belgore, he congratulated the new rank and asked the Controller General of NCoS, Haliru Nababa, to direct all controllers responsible for correctional facilities to reduce the facilities as stipulated by the Act. .
“I would like to remind the Controller General to direct all controllers in charge of correctional facilities across Nigeria to implement the ministerial directive to decommission facilities as per the NCoS Act,” Belgore said.
“We all work for a humane environment where inmates can realize their potential and achieve their dreams while incarcerated. They are human beings like you and me, so we must ensure good living conditions during their stay.
Aregbesola further told the state controller to ensure that the facility does not operate above capacity and can do this even if it means turning away prisoners brought to him if the center is full to avoid congestion.
“Let me support this fact with the Nigerian Correctional Service Act 2019, section 12 subsection 8 as amended which states that ‘without prejudice to subsection 4, the state controller of correctional services together with the superintendent, shall have the power to refuse further intake. inmates who appear to be the correctional center in question is filled to capacity.
“Therefore, I would advise you to be guided by the Act with a view to ensuring that our correctional centers are abolished because the construction of facilities across the country will make this task possible.
“Efforts to decongest our correctional centers by building new facilities in Kano and Karshi in the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT), to not only accommodate inmates but also provide better facilities to inmates, to improve living conditions and ensure skill acquisition in a learning environment which is conducive to the reintegration of inmates back into society,” he said.
Earlier, the Controller General of the service, Haliru Nababa said that the decoration and commissioning of operational vehicles specially modified and designated to send Armed Guards for various operational tasks in the defense of the custodial center and safe custody of detainees, is another milestone that proves the phenomenon. a transformation that NCoS has continued to experience in the past.
He noted that the elevation of senior officials will inject new ideas and revitalize the service workforce for optimal performance, therefore, the support the agency received from “the minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola and indeed all the Civil Defence, Corrections, Fire and Immigration agencies to making the 2022 promotion a reality.
“Let’s go first; congratulate those who are promoted, because they are promoted. As a Service, we always look forward to moments like this, as it shows growth and sustainability in the system. The welfare of personnel and inmates remains key in my supervision as this supports my commitment to provide more space and better living conditions for inmates,” he said.
One of the newly promoted senior officers, ACG Lydia Abraham, said that the promotion is a confidence by the service and the nation to do more to uplift the nation and show greater commitment to the trust placed in all those promoted.
Abraham who is also the General Manager of the Correctional Cooperative, (COCOS), said that “being promoted to the position of assistant controller general is a call to a bigger task and asks me to do more than what I have done in the past and I am sure that what I will do in the future will be bigger.
“I will encourage every female officer, our women and daughters to go out there so that no one intimidates you because you have a great deposit of potential in you so you must stir up the potential in you and let everyone know,” he advised.