COVID-19: Kogi judiciary reviews strategy for prison decongestion

The Kogi State judiciary is to adopt another penal method in the administration of justice towards the decongestion of correctional centres in the state.

The State Acting Chief Judge, Justice Henry Olusiyi stated this while receiving in audience the State Controller of Correctional Center, Abubakar Saliu Kurin in Lokoja.

Justice Olusiyi said the need to adopt other measures to decongest Correctional Centers became imperative with the outbreak of COVID -19 and the need to protect the inmates and staff overseeing their welfare.

He said the judiciary wills also liaise with the state government to give attention to identified challenges in Correctional Centers across the State.

The Acting Chief Judge, however, called for synergy towards a post-COVID-19 era as well as the need to reform the criminal justice.

Earlier, the Kogi State Controller of Correctional Center, Abubakar Saliu Kurin had enumerated some of the challenges facing the Centers across the State and the need for urgent attention to safeguarding the lives of the inmates and staff due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Controller appealed for aid towards admitting new inmates to be able to ascertain their health status as well as the need for rehabilitation of some of the facilities across the state.

In a remark, the Acting Chief Registrar of the High Court, Mr Bamidele Aina called on the Controller to remind the Acting Chief Judge on the need to decongest some of the Correctional Centers in the state.