The Federal Government has banned the use of mobile phones in all the prison formations by the inmates and prison officials.
It also directed the Nigerian Prison Service authorities to recover all handsets from inmates within 30 days.
Minister of Interior, Abba Moro, who handed down the order on Saturday in Abuja, during an interactive meeting with the senior officers of the Prison Service, decried indecent dressing by the inmates.
123
He stated that no inmate should be allowed to wear their choice of clothes or shoes, as is the practice presently, “no matter highly placed they may be.”
Moro said, “I have visited some prisons in other countries as the Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Nobody, no matter highly placed you are, you don’t come to prison with your phones, not even the minister of Interior as the supervising minister over the prisons. So, why are you an exception?
“Henceforth, no matter who you are including myself, that nobody goes into prison with telephones. And so, as you are going from here, create a meeting platform where all the officers that work in the prisons as they walk into prisons, they submit their phones and collect them when they close.
“Secondly, it means that you have one month to recover all the phones in the custody of inmates across the prison formations. Within one month, all prison formation must recover all telephones from inmates.”
The minister threatened to deal with the NPS management if it failed to carry out the directive, adding that he would know if the phones were not recovered from the inmates as ordered.
“Don’t forget that I will know if you fail to do this, because we have various agencies in Nigeria that are tracking telephone usages and MTN and other service providers could make available such facilities. The consequence of not doing this,you should already know,” he told the senior prison officials.
Commenting on the recent attack on Koton-karfe prison in Kogi State, the Minister expressed dismay over the failure of the prisons intelligence unit and the armed squad to foil the plots that led to two attacks within two years.
Moro directed the Acting Comptroller-General of Prisons, Aminu Suley, to investigate and report back to him, within two weeks, allegations that a prison officer assisted the attackers with arms.
It is a prison for God’s sake
Rightly stated ubesie, the inmates are ment to serve the crime they committed not enjoy some basic anemity, as of the senior NPS observing the law, that’s why Moro said his going to get the help of MTN or any other I.T technician to help check if they have complied with the order
Thank God sense have grow into our FG, this passing of laws is good because I don’t know why a inmates should be using a cell phone ,the inmates are allow to serve their crimes they commit. But another issue now is that after passing this law they won’t abide in it.
Wait it’s actually assured to hear that inmates have cell phone in their possession and also some highly placed prisoners decide what kind of clothes they wear and what shoe they put on, please I we running a prison or relaxation center. Please Moro get the help of MTN or any IT technician that can help trace if senior NPS don’t comply by the 1 month ultimatum given out