Chapter 7: Discussion
7.4 Discussion of Findings
7.4.6 Orientating Physiotherapy Towards Prevention
The enactment of the first indigenous prisons‟ legislation, the Prisons Act of 1960 actually paved the way for the appointment of a Nigerian as the Director of Prisons.107 The said Act made provisions for the reception and treatment of prisoners; the organisation, control and constitution of the prison service; stores and accounts.108
Despite the enactment of the above Act, the attempt made by the Federal Government to take over the Regional Prisons in the same 1960 was strongly resisted by the native authorities. In 1966, the then Military Head of State, General JTU Aguiyironso promulgated a decree for the purpose of unifying the Nigerian prisons in line with the then
104 MA Agomo & IE Okagbue, op cit, p.179.
105 JJ Olurunmolar, op cit.
106 Ibid.
107 Mr. Giwa Osagie was the first indigenous Director of Prisons in Nigeria.
108MA Agomo & IE Okagbue, op cit.
31 Federal Military Government intention of running a Unitary Government in Nigeria.109 The said Decree was the Prisons Control Decree No 9 of 1966110.
Apart from the promulgation of the above Decree, the Native Authority Prisons continued to exist in the North. The said Native Authority Prisons were characterised by understaffed, over population, mismanagement and maladministration. Some of them were used as instruments for the victimisation of political opponents. Based on the above problems associated with the Native Authority Prisons of the North, the Federal Government finally abolished the Native Authority Prisons system on 1st April 1968.111 The abolition of the Native Authority Prisons system marked the beginning of centralised prisons system in Nigeria.
On 10th April 1972, the Federal Military Government of Nigeria under the leadership of General Yakubu Gowon (Rtd) promulgated the Prisons Decree No 9 of 1972.112 Section 1of the Prisons Act provides that:
There shall be in the civil service of the Federation a Comptroller-General, who shall have the general charge and superintendence of the prisons system in Nigeria to be known as the “Nigerian Prisons Service”, and such officers‟
subordinate to the Comptroller-General as maybe necessary for the proper operation of the service.
Section 16 of the Prisons Act, empowers the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to make standing orders for the good order, discipline and welfare of prisons while section 2(1) of the said Act provides that the Minister113 may, by order in the Federal Gazette,
109 Decree No1 of 1966.
110 The Prisons Act, Cap P29 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004. Section 18 thereof provides in its saving and transitional provisions that until vesting day, local prisons shall be treated as if the Prisons (Control) Act NO 9 of 1966 were still in force with references to the Comptroller-General and this Act substituted for references to the Federal Director of Prisons.
111 IW Orakwe, „The Origin of Prisons in Nigeria‟, op cit.
112Now the Prisons Act, Cap P 29 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
113 The Minister in this regard is the Minister of Internal Affairs.
32 declare any building or place in Nigeria to be a prison and by the same or a subsequent order specify the area for which the prisons is to be established.114 For this purpose, every prison shall include:
(a) the grounds and buildings within the prison enclosure, and
(b) any lock-up house for the temporary detention or custody of prisoner newly apprehended or under remand which is declared by the Minister by order in the Federal Gazette to be part of the prison.115
In the same vein, section 2 of the Appointment of Prisons Order116 provides thus:
„The building known as the prison or specifically mentioned at each of the places named in column A of the schedule hereto are declared to be prison, as designated in column B‟.117
In another development, in the same 1972, a campaign was launched by Alhaji Sule Katu of the Public Service Commission in all the Nigerian universities to attract university graduates into the prison service. This led to the influx of graduates into the prison service.118 According to Olurunmolar, „the influx of graduates into the system aroused the resignation of serving officers who perceived the exercise as a threat to frustrate them. To allay such fears, there was a promotion galore in 1972 which affected all ranks‟.119
In 1975, prisons administration was extended to then 19 states of the federation. This paved the way for the appointment of seven Assistant Directors of Prisons to man the prisons in the new states created. With the creation of the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nigeria now has 8 Zonal Commands of Prisons, 36 State
114 Section 2(1) of the Prisons Act, ibid.
115 Section 2(2) of the Prisons Act, ibid .
116 Appointment of Prisons Order is a Subsidiary Legislation to the Prisons Act, ibid.
117 See the list of prisons in columns A and B of the Prisons Act.
118 JJ Olurunmolar, op.cit p.12
119 Ibid.
33 Commands, 1 FCT Command and a total of 240 Prisons facilities spread across the six geopolitical zones of the country.120
The prisons statistics as at 31st October 2014 revealed that Nigerian prisons‟
population stood at 57,121 out of which 39,577 were awaiting trial inmates while 17,544 were convicts.121 As at 31st October 2015 the population rose to 65,000 out of which 72%
(46,800) were awaiting trial inmates while 28% (18,200) were convicts.122 In October 2016 the prison population had increased to 69,000 out of which 49,680 were awaiting trial inmates while 19320 were convicts.123 What an unfortunate situation! Where rests the constitutional presumption of innocent until proven guilty? These and more will be discussed in detail at the appropriate chapter.