The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved a contract worth N2.8 billion for the installation of a digital web-based integrated system to aid de congestion of prisons across the country.
Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Mr Abubakar Malami, who disclosed this at the end of the weekly FEC meeting chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the State House in Abuja, said the contract would improve the country’s justice system.
He said the facilities would assist officials of the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation, the Nigeria Prisons Service, the Nigeria Police Force and some selected courts to monitor real-time progress of pending cases, movement of suspects between the courts and prisons, those who have overstayed their prison terms and those wrongly imprisoned.
He said the facilities would also make it possible for the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation to monitor on daily basis prison inmates that should be taken to court and when.
He said the facilities are in place, the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation would also be to identify inmates that have stayed for long awaiting tria and those whose cases have peculiar twists or need other interventions.
The minister said the new system would replace the practice of setting up government committees that usually embark on tour of prisons to hear individual cases and identify inmates that deserve pardon or prerogative of mercy as part of efforts to decongest the prisons.
He said system would be operated by trained staff of the Nigeria Prisons Service and that there would be systemic checks to substantiate the input or data of suspects put into the system to avoid compromise and other forms of corruption.
