Gov. Ganduje frees 3,717 inmates from Correctional Centres in Kano

By Abdullahi A Alkasim

Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of Kano State frees 3,717 inmates of Correctional Centres in Kano from 2015 to 2021, all in an effort to decongest these Centres, as requested by President Muhammadu Buhari a few years back. The President urged state governors to help decongest Correctional Centres nationwide.

He made the disclosure when he received, in a courtesy call, members of the Presidential Committee on Correctional Centres Reform and Decongestion, at his office, Thursday, under the Chairmanship of Justice Ishaq Bello.

“President Muhammadu Buhari thought it right when he called for the decongestion of our Correctional Centres. Looking at the happenings in those Centres. That, we should respect life and we should have hope in our inmates,” he stated.

He disclosed that “We adopted two major strategies to answer the call of President Muhammadu Buhari, for decongesting Correctional Centres.

We put in place the Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy, under which we release inmates two times a year. All during Sallah festivities. Sallah-El-Fitr and Sallah-El-Kabir. So far we have released 3,717 inmates from 2015 to date.

We paid for them, fees they were not able to pay that landed them in those Centres. We also give them transport money after they regained freedom. We recruit some of them in the state civil service.

We are also keen on the administration of justice. Many at times it is not all about releasing those inmates, but we still have a greater percentage of those in these Centres as awaiting trials individuals.”

Justice Bello, who led the Committee, commended governor Ganduje’s “…demonstration of interest and passion when it comes to issues of justice.”

Explaining to the governor, “We have gotten into files and received cases today when over 28 people regained freedom.”

“Furthermore it is crucial to mention that with the support of the Kano state government, the Committee was able to secure the release of about 368 inmates from various correctional centres in Kano state at the of the first visit,” he disclosed.