Reps Seek Raise In Inmates Feeding Allowance To N4,000

The House of Representatives has called on the federal government to increase the daily feeding allowance for inmates in Nigerian Correctional Service facilities from N1,125 to N4,000, considering “the current market realities.”

This resolution passed on Thursday also includes a recommendation to increase capital allocations to the Nigerian Correctional Service to N30 billion in the 2025 budget.

This additional funding would allow the service to complete “all critical ongoing and abandoned projects.”

The motion, introduced by Rep. Chinedu Ogah, raised concerns about the federal government’s “negligence in providing adequate budget allocations to the Nigerian Correctional Service,” which has led to issues affecting the system’s effectiveness.

Ogah argued that overcrowding and challenges in correctional centers, which contribute to jailbreaks and other security problems, stem from the government’s failure “to provide enough funds to manage the facilities.”

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He noted that frequent jailbreaks and serious infractions “have emerged as persistent national security challenges.”

He also pointed out that the “2024 capital budget allocation of N14 billion to the service is inadequate to accommodate critical expenditure items as such: renovation of custodial centres nationwide, which cost about N120 million each; construction of 3,000 capacity Medium Security Custodial Centres as detailed in the budget, among other projects.”

The motion received widespread support and was referred to the House Committees on Reformatory Institutions and Appropriations to ensure compliance.