Nathaniel Zacchaeus, Abuja
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), yesterday disclosed that the Federal Government released over 12, 000 inmates from various correctional centres across the country in the last seven years.

Malami stated this when he appeared before the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, and Legal Matters.

He was at the National Assembly to defend his ministry’s 2023 budget alongside heads of the agencies under his supervision.

The minister said the enactment of the Legal Aid Council Act and commended the National Assembly led to the success of the exercise.

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Malami did not mention the 101 Boko Haram suspects allegedly released recently from the Kirikiri Correctional Centre in Lagos State.

He did not state whether or not they were part of the 12,000 released prisoners.

It was recently reported that 101 `Boko Haram’ suspects arrested at various locations in 2009, who had been in detention since then at various correctional facilities, including the Kirikiri maximum and medium centres in Lagos had been released.

Fielding questions after the last National Security Council (NSC) meeting in Abuja, the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor, confirmed the release of the 101 Boko Haram suspects.

Irabor had said, “Perhaps maybe at this point, what I may need to add is the fact that Council was also briefed that 101 ex-combatants were taken to Operation Safe Corridor (in Gombe) and currently undergoing the process of de-radicalisation at the centre.”

Malami however, explained that the Federal Government was able to decongest the over-congested prisons across the country through policy actions aside from the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, meant for expeditious dispensation of Justice.

He said, “When this government came on board in 2015, the problem of prison congestion was at the front burner of national discourse, which made President Muhammadu Buhari set types of machinery in motion in different ways for required solution.

“One of such types of machinery set in motion was a Presidential Committee set up for Prison Decongestion which liaised with other stakeholders in the Justice sector for a way out.

“Aside from the committee, Mr President himself also wrote letters to the 36 states governors and Chief Judges of the states for required visitations to prisons and exercise of the prerogative of mercies from time to time.

“In one of such visitations made by the Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Ganduje, about 500 inmates were granted the pardon in one day, the totality of which had led to the release of over 12, 000 inmates across the country within the last six years.

“Special attention was given to awaiting trial persons who constitute the bulk of the inmates across the various correctional centres in the country by taking Magistrates and Judges to the Centres for on-the-spot dispensation of Justice.

“The guideline on non-custodian sentences issued in 2020 has also helped in a tremendous reduction of inmates across the various correctional centres.

“The problem as far as this government is concerned, is more or less, a thing of the past now, as in line with policy guidelines in place, no correctional centre today without required space, will receive an inmate,” he said.

The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele (APC Ekiti Central), said the 2023 budget estimates for the Federal Ministry of Justice and its agencies as contained in the Appropriation Bill submitted by President Muhammadu Buhari is N71.291bn.

The total sum, according to him, is inclusive of allocations to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and statutory transfer to the National Human Rights Commission.

He specifically commended the President for increasing the budgetary provisions of the Council of Legal Education from N2.7bn it was in the 2022 fiscal year to N10.12bn proposed for the 2023 fiscal year.