November 24, 2014- The Federal Government today outlawed use of phones in Nigerian prisons and directed that all phones in custody of inmates be confiscated within 30 days.
Minister of Internal Affairs, Mr. Abba Moro gave the order while speaking with prison officials in Abuja.
“I have visited some prisons in other countries as the Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; nobody, no matter how 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, nobody goes into prison with telephones,” the minister said.
He urged the senior warders to create a platform where all the officers that work in the prisons will submit their phones and collect them at close of work.
Not less than two jailbreaks have been recorded in recent times in Nigeria. In July this year, there was a jailbreak in Akure, Ondo State where 175 prisoners escaped, 54 of them were later recaptured. In October 2014, there was a jailbreak in which 10 inmates were killed.
