How 5 Inmates Got Electrocuted, 10 Others Injured In Prison

CYRIACUS IZUEKWE

Facts have emerged on how five inmates were electrocuted, while10 others were left with varying degree of injuries by a naked electric cable at the over congested Ikoyi Correctional Centre in Lagos.

P.M.EXPRESS confirmed that the incident happened on Monday morning at the centre formerly known as Ikoyi Medium Prison, which has now compounded the problem of the inmates who are battling for survival due to congestion.
The incident had left the survivors battling for their lives in an undisclosed hospital after the electric cable from Eko Electric fell and got in touch with the iron beds inside the prison hall.
According to a prison source, the prison hall was supposed to house about 35 inmates but had a population of about 140 inmates excluding the new inmates, who would join on that day from various courts in the state.
Reacting, the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, through the Press Officer, Ministry of Interior, Jane Osuji said: “The attention of the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has been drawn to an electrocution incidence at the Ikoyi Medium Security Prison in Lagos. The Minister has directed a quick investigation into the root cause and the ministry will in the next few hours share a comprehensive update on the incidence”.
“While we commiserate with the victims of the incidence, the Minister has ordered immediate medical attention for those affected.”
However, both the inmates and prison sources did not accept the sympathy from the government because they claimed that the government officials knew the ugly situation in the prison but refused to do something.
It was gathered that the casualties would have been more but for the intervention of medical workers in the centre because more than 100 inmates were in the cell at the time of the incident.
The source stated , “Actually, what happened was that while some inmates were going to the courts this morning (Monday ), there was a power surge. The surge cut off an electric wire. You know, Nigerian prisons use metal bunk beds. So, the inmates, who were close to the bunk beds, were the major casualties”.
“The five deceased inmates were the closet to the bunk beds and that was why they did not survive it. If not for the medical workers in the prison, many more inmates would have died. The prison authorities called the power company and power was disconnected. The officers also offered first aid, which reduced the number of casualties.”
The spokesperson for the Nigerian Correctional Service, Francis Enobore, confirmed the incident.
Enobore, in a statement he issued on behalf of the Controller General of the NCS, Ja ’afaru Ahmed, described the incident as “ tragic and most ill- fated”.
He said, “Early this morning, the Controller General of Corrections , Ja ’afaru Ahmed, received with the deepest grief the unfortunate death of five inmates of the Ikoyi Medium Security Custodial Centre, Lagos, as a result of electrical fault in one of the cells.
“The CG, who visited the scene of the incident with the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, noted that it was the first time in the history of the NCS to experience such a disaster.”
“He, therefore, ordered an immediate investigation into the sad incident with a view to taking necessary actions to forestall a recurrence . He commiserated with the families of the diseased inmates and prayed for quick recovery for the seven others, who are receiving treatment in hospital.”
Aregbesola has ordered a probe of the incident and directed that steps should be taken to prevent future incidents.
According to Enobore, the Controller General assured members of the public that inmates’ safety and humane custody would continue to be a priority of the government .
The statement noted that as of the time of the incident, the Ikoyi Medium Security Custodial Centre, which was built in 1955 for 800 inmates, had a population of 3, 113, with 2, 680 as awaiting trial persons.