PRISON walls in Nigeria may be high, but the rules appear remarkably low. Behind the gates of some custodial centres, inmates reportedly have access to drugs, mobile phones, gambling platforms, businesses and even social media livestreams.
If these reports are true, Nigeria has a correctional crisis that goes far beyond overcrowded cells and decaying infrastructure.
The reported arrest of Iyabo Sowunmi for allegedly attempting to smuggle a hard drug known as “colos” to her son, Dare, is the latest disturbing pointer. Dare is on death row at the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Ibara, Ogun State.
The incident exposes not only the depravity that can surround the prison system, but also the disturbing ease with which the outside world may be penetrating its supposedly secure walls.
Sowunmi was arrested barely a week ago after correctional officers allegedly discovered the substance concealed in a sachet of a popular cocoa beverage. She has since been handed over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.
