By Paul Effiong, Abuja
Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Reformatory Institutions, Chinedu Ogah has called on President Bola Tinubu to urgently sign into law, the Correctional Service Trust Fund Bill recently passed by the National Assembly.
Ogah made the appeal while expressing concern over the deteriorating state of correctional facilities across the country, stressing that the proposed trust fund would provide critical financial support to revamp infrastructure and improve inmates welfare nationwide.
The lawmaker lamented the widespread infrastructural decay across correctional centres in various states, describing the situation as alarming and in urgent need of intervention.
He noted that many facilities are overstretched and lack basic amenities required for effective rehabilitation and reformation of inmates.
Ogah also called on spirited individuals, corporate organisations and entrepreneurs to channel their donations and corporate social responsibility initiatives toward supporting correctional centres across Nigeria.
The chairman noted that his committee is fully aware of the numerous challenges confronting the Nigerian Correctional Service and remains committed to supporting reforms that will strengthen the system.
He acknowledged the difficult conditions under which officers operate and emphasised the need for collaborative efforts between the executive, legislature and private stakeholders to reposition the service for optimal performance.
Responding to questions raised by the committee on how to decongest prisons in the country, the Controller-General of Nigeria Correctional Service, NCoS, Sylvester Nwakuche advised government to adopt the custodian and non-custodian method.
“As of February 9, the total inmate population stood at 80,812. Of this figure, 51,955 are awaiting trial inmates, 24,913 are convicted inmates, while 3,850 fall under other detention categories,” Nwakuche said.
He described the Nigeria Correctional Service as a critical institution within the criminal justice system, responsible for custodial and non-custodial services, safe custody of legally detained persons, as well as their rehabilitation and reintegration as law-abiding citizens, adding that the Service is mandated to ensure that inmates are adequately fed in line with the United Nations Minimum Standard Rules for the Treatment of Offenders.
He, however, called for more funding of the Service, disclosing that over N40 billion is currently being proposed in the 2026 budget for the feeding of inmates out of its total budget estimate of over N138 billion .
Nwakuche stated that the service under his leadership operates an open and transparent management system in handling inmates and administrative processes.
Addressing the issue of overcrowding, he advocated for the full implementation of custodial and non-custodial measures, noting that awaiting-trial inmates currently outnumber those serving confirmed sentences.
He disclosed that the service has repeatedly appealed to the federal government through the Ministry of Interior for functional workable solutions to decongest facilities nationwide.
On the 2025 budget performance, the controller-general disclosed that the Service received a total appropriation of N184.63 billion, covering personnel, overhead and capital expenditure.
Of the N124.31 billion approved for personnel costs, N112.68 billion representing 90.6 percent was released and fully utilised for salaries, pensions and health insurance contributions under the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, IPPIS.
He said recurrent overhead release stood at 73.7 percent with the last tranche for October 2025 released in December. From the funds received, N27.28 billion representing 71.7 percent was spent on inmates feeding nationwide, while outstanding obligations for food rations stood at N10.75 billion.
Additionally, N6.49 billion was expended on operational costs, including staff training, fuelling of operational vehicles for court duties, electricity, security services and facility maintenance.
In a document presented by the service, capital funding recorded the lowest level of implementation. Out of the N14.50 billion appropriated for capital projects, only N3.22 billion representing 22.2 percent was released and utilised, leaving N11.27 billion in unreleased funds for projects nationwide.
