Acting Chief Judge of Kogi state, Justice Henry Olusiyi has assured that the judiciary will not relent in its effort to decongest the facilities at Correctional Service in the state to prevent the spread of COVID-19 among the inmates.
Justice Olusiyi who stated this when the Controller Kogi state command of Correctional Service paid him a courtesy visit in his office, Lokoja on Friday said the judiciary is mindful of the fact that the custodian centres if allowed to be crowded can put the lives of the intimates in jeopardy as a result of coronavirus pandemic.
“We are mindful of the fact that we are passing through hard time as a result of coronavirus outbreak that has continue to ravage the world.
“Apparently, there is need to secure the inmates and the officers that take care of them by not sending new elements into the facilities that can transmit the pandemic.
“We will try our best to adopt other custodian needs other than sending new convicts to the correctional centres because we are mindful of the problem and we will not add to it,” the CJ said.
Assuring that the synergy between the two bodies would continue to grow in strength, the Acting Chief Judge described the service as a critical stakeholder in the administration of criminal justice in Nigeria.
He added that the judiciary and the correctional service are on the same page to ensure inmates comes out of the facilities as better citizens rather than making them more harden.
Earlier, the Controller, Kogi state command of Correctional Service, Mr Abubakar Gurin said he was in the office of the Acting Chief Judge to condole with him over the death of the former chief judge of the state, late Justice Nasiru Ajanah and to also present some of the challenges affecting service.
