The Inmate's Home: Nigeria’s Prison Capacity
Nelson Mandela once said that “..no one truly knows a nation
until one has been inside its jails. A nation should not be judged by how it
treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones”.
They may have lost their freedom but they are still human beings who still have certain rights - limited rights. They should be treated with dignity. That is why they are fed, clothed and even trained in vocational skills to make positive impact after serving their sentence.
We have had great men
who have spent years in prison and still come out to serve their countries and
add value to humanity. Former Nigerian and South African Presidents, Olusegun Obasanjo and Nelson Mandela respectively are typical examples. I strongly believe that
proper treatment of inmates begins with
where they sleep – the bed. Every human being no matter how busy they
are and have been must surely rest. It is inherent in human beings to rest and rest well. Prisoners should not be denied that.
Nigeria's Prison History
The declaration of Lagos as a colony by Britain
in 1861 gave rise to formation of a police force starting with 25 constables
and in 1863, four courts which needed the prisons to complete the justice
system. The first prison to be established in Lagos had an initial inmate capacity of 300.
In an April 2016 report, the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics
(NBS) gave the total number of bed space available in Nigeria’s prison to be at
56,153 while the total number of prison inmates as march 2016 was 63, 142. That
means there are precisely 6989 more inmates than Nigeria’s prisons have room
for.
The Daily
Trust cited the Nigerain Prison Service(NPS) to have 240 prisons nationwide
as at October 2014 with most of them in the South. The maximum and medium or
satellite prisons are the main categories in operation.
STATISTICS
Top 5 Capacity Prisons
Statistics shows that Lagos, Borno, Kaduna, Adamawa and Edo top the list in terms
of capacity.
Nigeria’s 5
Least Capacity Prisons
The prisons in the country with the least capacities are
located in the south with bed spaces below 600. Ekiti and Bayelsa states have
the least capacities with 200 each. Does it mean that these states have low
crime rates?
Major Regions
Statistics show that the northern part of the country has
8,747 more bed space than the southern part.
Geo-political Zones
Below is a breakdown of prison capacities according to the
six geo-political zones in the country.
North-West(NW): 11,000
North-East(NE): 10,938
North-Central(NC): 7,512
South-South(SS): 7,540
South-East(SS): 5,054
South-West(SW): 7,383
The statistics here have therefore shown that the Nigeria’s
prison capacity is inadequate to cater for its prison population. Also, the
northern part of the country has more bed spaces to accommodate more prison
inmates than the southern part.
It would still be too early to conclude that the number of
prisons in a location is an indication of the crime rate in that area. Several
factors are involved before one comes to such conclusion. The role of efficient
data collection by judicial agencies such as the Nigerian Police and Prison
Service and the interpretation of such data will be most useful in the
administration of the justice.
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