The Nigerian Correctional Service has debunked viral reports claiming that underage protesters, arrested during the #EndBadGovernance protests were detained in their facility in Kuje, Abuja.
Recall that INFORMATION NIGERIA had reported that Justice Obiora Egwuatu ordered that the young protesters be placed in a borstal facility while adults would be remanded in standard cells until their bail conditions were met.
Meanwhile, five among the protesters, looking malnourished, due to poor welfare, reportedly fainted inside court room before they were arraigned on Friday.
Reacting to the development in a statement on Saturday, by NCoS spokesman, Umar Abubakar, disclosed that viral reports claiming that the correctional center where the minors were kept lack proper facilities.
Abubakar assured that the service adheres to strict standards when managing juvenile offenders.
He urged the public to disregard misinformation on this issue, reiterating the NCoS’s commitment to professionalism and respect for human rights.
The statement reads: “There are misleading reports making the rounds in some sections of the media purporting that the suspects who were arraigned before Justice Obiora Egwuatu at the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, for treason, during the End Bad Governance protest that held in August 2024, were remanded in one of the adult custodial centres in Abuja.
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“The said report has no iota of truth as the Service operates based on best correctional and global practices.
“To set records straight, the Nigerian Correctional Service Act 2019 has empowered the Controllers of Corrections as well as Superintendents-in-charge of Custodial Centres not to admit juveniles in facilities meant for adults.
“The Act also mandates the Service to reject more intake of inmates where it is apparent that the custodial facility in question is filled to capacity.
“The Service wishes to inform the public that the said suspects were rejected and none of the suspects was remanded in adult custodial facilities as insinuated by the said report.
“Furthermore, the general public is enjoined to discountenance the said report as it is not the true position of things.”
