The Nigerian Government has announced that 12 of Nigeria’s 246 custodial centres are currently undergoing rehabilitation.
Minister of Interior Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo revealed this on Thursday during Politics Today on Channels Television, noting that many facilities are over a century old.
“Mr President did not become president 100 years ago. We have 246 correctional centres, and none were established under this administration. The Ikoyi facility was built in 1956, and the Suleja centre—where we had a jailbreak—was established in 1914. Many are that old. I can confirm that around 12 centres are being rehabilitated,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He added that some facilities had no medical doctors until President Bola Tinubu approved their recruitment. “When this government came in, some state commands did not have a single doctor. The President approved the employment of 50 doctors and 100 nurses and also directed that NYSC doctors be posted to correctional centres,” he explained.
Highlighting recent improvements, the minister cited major surgeries conducted at Kuje prison and upgrades at Port Harcourt prison.
On measures to strengthen custodial centres, Tunji-Ojo said: “We cannot expect the President to fix all 246 locations—each with about 10 structures—within two years. We are collaborating with other security agencies, and a lot of intelligence work is ongoing. Yes, we are not where we want to be, but we are not where we were.”