By Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja
In March 2023, former President Muhammadu Buhari signed into law the Fifth Alteration (No.15), to the 1999 Nigerian Constitution.
This Law altered the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 to delete the item “prisons” in the Exclusive Legislative List and redesignate it as “Correctional Services” in the Concurrent Legislative List; and for related matters.
It was sponsored by the Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, National Assembly. The Bill was drafted by Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja, one of Nigeria’s leading legislative drafting lawyers.
Since the enactment of this law, none of the 36 States of Nigeria has engaged in the construction of a prison or correctional centre.
Instead in March 2018, we were informed that:
“The UK is to pay for a new wing in one of Nigeria’s largest prisons (Kirikiri Prison in Lagos) to help expedite the transfer of offenders from British jails.
Up to £700,000 will be spent on a 112-bed annex in Kiri Kiri prison in the country’s largest city Lagos.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said it would enable eligible Nigerian inmates serving time in the UK to return home to complete their sentences.
The UK and Nigeria signed a prisoner transfer agreement in 2014.”
Already, private individuals namely Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs) and relatives of inmates are highly involved in the management of correctional centres (formerly known as prisons) in Nigeria. They provide food, clothing and health care services for inmates. Others provide educational and religious instructions for inmates.
All that is required is for formalising these processes through the signing of formal agreements and contracts between State Governments and private sector organisations to permit the said private sector organisations to build and manage these correctional centres.
Both philanthropic organisations, and the relatives of inmates would be more than happy to pay the fees for their incarcerated inmates to receive better food, health care, educational materials, recreational facilities, sports equipment, sleeping materials and other creature comforts!!
If this happens, the federal government could witness a decongestion of the correctional centres, a goal which it has failed to achieve since the year 1999!!!
Private prisons and correctional centres are already working in the United Kingdom and the United States of America for many years.
For example, “Private prisons in the United Kingdom are run by private companies under contract with the government.
How do they work?
Private prison companies enter into contracts with the government to house prisoners.
The companies pay the government a monthly or per diem rate for each prisoner or available space.
Who runs them?
In England and Wales, Serco, G4S, and Sodexo run private prisons.
In Scotland, one prison is run by a private sector operator under contract with the Scottish Prison Service.
Examples of private prisons in the UK
- HM Prison Addiewell
- HM Prison Altcourse
- HM Prison Ashfield
- B. Brook House Immigration Removal Centre
- HM Prison Buckley Hall
- C. Campsfield House Immigration Removal Centre
- Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre
- HM Prison Doncaster; and
- HM Prison DovegateDungavel”
Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja,
Executive Director,
Nigerian Law Society (NLS)
