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Controller BR Freedman visits the LSSTF in a bid to improve operation in Lagos State Correctional Centres

A team from the Nigerian Correctional Service, Lagos Command led by Controller of Corrections BR Freedman paid a courtesy visit to the Fund’s office.

Mr. Freedman who recently took over as the Controller ofthe Lagos State Command deemed it necessary to pay a visit to the Fund as part of his familiarization tour to key security stakeholders in the State for synergy towards the operation of an efficient Justice System.

The visit was also an opportunity to intimate the Fund on the operations of the Correctional service, its challenges as well as to table the request for more logistics and equipment for safer custody such as Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV), Communication Jammers, Scanner, Electric Fencing, etc. to improve its operations. Controller Freedman also pledged to do his best to ensure that the security of the Correctional centres in the State is beefed up to avert any untoward event.

At the meeting, the Executive Secretary/CEO of the Fund Dr. Abdurrazaq Balogun briefed the team on the mandate of the Fund as well as its activities, noting that the Fund solely relies on voluntary donations to meet its mandate, and there has been a short fall in donations that has hindered the Fund from providing as much interventions for the security agencies as required.

Dr. Balogun also spoke on some concerns of citizensabout the operations of the Correctional centres, bothering on the preparedness of the facilities and operatives torespond to unrest within the facilities and externally, including the congestion in the facilities, particularly with the incidence at the Kuje Correctional centre, which he believes should make the authorities deploy moreresources to correctional facilities especially in Lagos. The ES of suggested that the Service should consider the possibility of relocating the Correctional centres to create more room for inmates, the establishment of court rooms closer to major correctional centres or virtually to reduce the risk/cost related to logistics and transportation ofinmates to the courts in far locations.

The CEO of the Fund mentioned that the Fund had supported the correctional service in the pasted with patrol vehicles, high capacity buses for conveying inmates, etc. and assured the agency of the LSSTF’s continuous intervention as much as possible while also asking that the Controller to use his good offices to encourage notable organizations and people in his network to make donations to the Fund for the benefit of security agencies in the State towards the improvement of security for all.

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