The Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS) has revealed that N800 is spent daily to feed each of the 900 dogs in all its custodial centers across the country, while just N750, which is N250 per meal, is spent to feed each prisoner, most of whom are awaiting trials.
The Comptroller General (CG) of the Correctional Service, Haliru Nababa, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja during the 2024 budget defence session with the Joint Senate and House of Representatives Committee on Interior.
According to Mr Nababa, there are over N81,000 inmates across the custodial centres nationwide, with over 53,000 of them awaiting trial, however, N750 being spent to feed an inmate daily, was grossly inadequate.
The Comptroller General however revealed that the service had submitted a proposal to the Minister of Interior for an upward review of N3,000 daily feeding cost for an inmate.
Nababa said, “The total number of inmates in 2023 is 81,354 nationwide while 53,352 are awaiting trial. We feed each inmate with N750 daily and they are fed 3 times daily (N250 for each square meal). We have 900 security dogs and to feed a dog each day is N800 daily.
“We wrote a letter to the President to review N3,000 per day for each inmate. We want this committee to assist us in putting in words for us. The money is grossly inadequate. The budget for feeding each of them per day is N751 per day at N250 per meal, per inmate.”
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Chairman of the Committee and former Governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole (All Progressives Congress , Edo North), however expressed his displeasure that “dogs are better fed than inmates in correctional centres, many of whom are awaiting trial,” describing the situation as ugly.
According to Oshiomhole, this revelation explained why some inmates convicted on simple cases, leave prisons as hardened criminals due to the inhuman treatment meted out to them.
“With the high cost of living, we suspect that these inmates are not fed three times a day. It’s not your fault, don’t try to be defensive. It’s an appropriation issue,” Oshiomole told the CG.
Speaking further, Oshiomhole said that 53,352 or more are not convicted yet, but are awaiting trial since they are not guilty of any offence known to law, and are innocent under the laws.
He added that for an innocent Nigerian who is being held in a correctional home, N250 per meal is grossly inadequate.
Oshiomhole lamented that, “The figures given here suggest that you have been dehumanizing Nigerians. If it was the policy of the Federal Government to appropriate more money to feed dogs than human beings, we must correct errors of the past.”
According to him, the government must scale up efforts to address unemployment as prisoners from other countries have made matters worse by taking up jobs meant for Nigerians, describing the situation as an inhumane act to inmates.
