Rauf Aregbesola Speaks On Releasing Prisoners To De-congest Prisons

Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, has said a committee has been set up to see how the prisons in Nigeria can be decongested in six months.

This, the minister said while speaking at a public hearing organized by the national assembly joint committee on appropriation.

According to the minister, the committee has started working with the office of the attorney-general of the federation (AGF) to achieve the target, adding that the move is in a bid to reduce pressure on its facilities while improving their conditions.

Aregbesola further noted that state governors would be carried along in the process since about 90% of inmates awaiting trial were said to have violated state laws.

“In no distant future, we will reduce the issue of awaiting trial considerably; as we are also working with the governors on that,” the minister said.

Aregbesola noted that across the country, there are 75,000 prison inmates.