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President Muhammadu Buhari is set to construct three new custodial centres with 3,000 capacity to ease congestion in correctional homes in the country,

The Minister of Interior, Mr Rauf Aregbesola, made this known on Friday at the inauguration of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Osun State Command Headquarters Complex, in Osogbo.

Aregbesola said the new custodial facilities would be cited in Karchi in Abuja, Kano, and Bori in Rivers.

According to the minister, each of the facilities will have courts for the trial of inmates.

He said the Federal Government’s plan was to extend the construction of such capacity custodial centres to the six
geopolitical zones in the country.

The minister disclosed that the custodial project in Kano was near completion.

Aregbesola said when the custodial projects were completed, they would help to ease congestion considerably and enhance the capacity to manage facilities for corrections of inmates.

The minister explained that the national custodial centres currently had the capacity to accommodate 57,278 inmates.

“But as of the last count, earlier in the week, there is a total population of 68,747 inmates, indicating an overpopulation capacity of 18 per cent,” he said.

He said the government had been addressing the challenges of congestion.

The minister noted that at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministries of Interior and Justice initiated a presidential pardon and amnesty programme for inmates.

According to him, some federal offenders benefited from the
programme and got reprieve, while the state governments got recommendations and guidelines for the release of their own convicts.

Aregbesola said that over 5,000 inmates had so far been released under the programme.

The Permanent Secretary, State House, Tijjani Umar on Tuesday in Abuja asked staff members to take oaths of secrecy while threatening whoever is found guilty of leaking inside information with stiff penalties.

He said staff members who disclose confidential information without authorisation will face penalties under the public service rules.

The Permanent Secretary stated this at the administration of Oath of Secrecy and Declaration of Secrecy to 42 staff members of the State House, POLITICS NIGERIA reports.

The Oath of Secrecy was administered by Justice Hamza Muazu of the Federal Capital Territory High Court.

According to the Umar, the oaths were administered to staff members who handle classified documents.

‘‘We discovered that due to deployment of officers and retirement, a number of our staff need to be placed under the radar so that they will be aware that their jobs, the kind of documents or information they are handling from day to day and beyond, are so important and must be safeguarded.

‘‘That’s the reason we decided to do the needful by administering the Oath of Secrecy, highlighting the importance of letting them know what information they are managing and the consequences of the breach of such information,’’ he said.

The Permanent Secretary noted that even though there had not been any breach, thr exercise will be continuous.

‘‘We have not had any breach. We don’t anticipate having any breach.

‘‘But then it’s our duty to let them understand that if there is any, there will be consequences after investigations and that also include after they have retired from the Civil Service,’’ he added.

Earlier before the administration of the Oaths, Mr Tukur Yahaya, the Director of Special Services Department, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, took the staff members through a sensitisation process, explaining the essence of the Official Secrets Act, 1962.

‘‘The essence of this exercise is to ensure the safety and security of government information, documents and facilities,’’ he said.

The Northern Elders Forum has advised the next political party that will take over the helms of national affairs to prepare itself for a very difficult assignment of fixing the country.

According to the forum’s spokesman, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, the President Muhammadu Buhari’s ruling All Progressive Congress would have completely wrecked Nigeria by 2023 with the growing insecurity and economic woes.

Baba-Ahmed stated this during an interview on Channels Television on Monday, while also blaming the nation’s ruling elite for the failure of the country.

He said the country’s current challenges were not just as a result of banditry and kidnapping activities but also leadership failure.

He said, “What are you going to do with 2023 because between now and 2023, APC would have completely wrecked this country? You are going to take over a country that has been completely destroyed by a party that has been substantially produced by the PDP and how are you going to fix this country? What’s your blueprint for what happens to Nigeria in 2023?”

Nigeria has been experiencing a series of security threats ranging from terrorism, banditry, militancy, cultism among others in several parts of the country.

The country has been ravaged by terrorism for more than 10 years – a menace which has claimed the lives of over 36,000 people and forced hundreds of thousands to be homeless in the North-East.

The Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) split from the jihadist group Boko Haram in 2016 and has since turned a dominant threat in Nigeria, attacking troops and bases while killing and kidnapping passengers at bogus checkpoints.

On March 1, the insurgents razed a United Nations humanitarian compound in the town of Dikwa after dislodging troops, killing six civilians.

Nigeria’s jihadist violence has spread to neighbouring Chad, Cameroon and Niger, prompting a regional military coalition to fight the insurgents.