The federal government has announced a 50% increase in the feeding allowance for inmates across all Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS) facilities in the country.

The decision follows a viral video in which inmates at a correctional centre in Calabar, Cross River State, complained about poor feeding conditions.

Umar Abubakar, spokesperson for the NCoS, made this announcement during a joint press briefing held at the Customs headquarters in Abuja on Thursday, September 5. The briefing was organised by the Strategic Communications Interagency Policy Committee (SCIPC) under the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and attended by representatives from various security agencies, including the Army and Navy.

Abubakar noted that the review was the first phase of adjustments aimed at addressing the rising cost of food nationwide. He said;

“The viral video is not a representation of Nigeria Correctional Service, nor is it a mandate of the service on reformation and rehabilitation of inmates.

“Let me make this known here that since the inception of the change in name, a significant progress has been made in reforming those who are in our custodies.

“Four days ago, I granted an interview where we gave details on the alleged video. The NCoS has actually ordered for detailed investigation on the said video, which is going viral, and on the outcome of the investigation, I may not be able to speak much on that.

“And on the issue of cost of food, the federal government has actually reviewed the feeding allowance of inmates in our custody by 50 percent. And this is just the first phase of the review.

“Let me say here that currently, in an effort to ensure that we have what I refer to as public safety through our reformatory activities, we have over 1,000 of our inmates who are actually going through their various degree programmes, 282 doing their diploma and master’s degree programmes, and six that are doing their PhD programme. Three of the PhD students are already writing their thesis.

“All this is geared towards our efforts to ensure that we change the psyche and behaviour of our inmates and to help their re-entry back to society.

“It is the care we give to these inmates in our custody that has actually provided a serene environment to help them learn skill acquisition across our custodial center, and to also pursue their educational programme.”