Rights commission begins audit of South East prisons

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) yesterday began an audit of prisons in the south east and raised the alarm over the deplorable condition of the Enugu Prison Services.

Leader of the delegation conducting the audit and Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Prof. Ben Angwe, said that the state of Nigerian Prisons in Enugu was embarrassing and counter-productive.

Angwe blamed the rot and over-congestion on unprofessional conducts of some law enforcement agents and judicial officers who did not put to use their investigative prowess.

He stated that statistics available indicated that law enforcement agents had the reputation of arresting people in the zone under false allegations.

He said that there were many decisions state governors needed to take to ameliorate the situation, particular with regards to the appointment of legal officers, including magistrates and judges.

He said the country could no longer afford a situation where innocent people were incarcerated and mixed with criminals.

Angwe said that at the end of the audit exercise in the state some decisions would be taken as it affected the Enugu Prison.