Over 67% of inmates in prisons across Nigeria are awaiting trial – FG

• The prolonged delay in prosecuting inmates, many of whom are languishing in prison for petty crimes and misdemeanours, has been cited as the reason for congestion of the nation’s prisons, leading to their abysmal and deplorable condition.

The Federal Government on Thursday disclosed that about 67% of inmates in correctional facilities across Nigeria have not been tried.

Interior Minister, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure on Thursday when he appeared on Channels Television’s Politics Today.

He noted that collaboration between the federal and state governments is vital to improve correctional services and decongest the facilities, adding that the awaiting trial inmates are the responsibility of the state government.

“We can work out a synergy, you know, states that want to have their own correctional centers, by law, they’re entitled to have it and federal too, but we must also understand that about 72 per cent of our inmates are state offenders and about 67 per cent or so are waiting trials,” Tunji-Ojo said on the current affairs show.

“So it means two-thirds are state offenders, but the Federal Government is the one taking responsibility now.

“I don’t like to shift blame. As Mr. President will always say, ‘We were elected to produce results, not to make excuses.’ So we’re not here to make excuses, but as a government, we will interface with our governors. We will come together to be able to have a shared strategy towards solving these correctional problems,” he stated.

The prolonged delay in prosecuting inmates, many of whom are languishing in prison for petty crimes and misdemeanours, has been cited as the reason for congestion of the nation’s prisons, leading to their abysmal and deplorable condition.

The minister, last month, said the Federal Government had freed 4,550 offenders — part of moves to decongest correctional centres in Nigeria.

Tunji-Ojo explained that the decision followed a review targeted at inmates who were held for minor, bailable offences and those with elongated incarceration.

According to the minister, the government of President Bola Tinubu is committed to the repositioning of correctional centres across the country despite their condition when the President assumed office in 2023.

“But I need to put it on record that this particular administration has done a lot in the last two years in terms of putting resources and trying to make sure that we fix our correctional centres,” he said.