Christmas: The wife of the Ebonyi Governor helps 53 prisoners be released

Mrs. Marymaudline Nwifuru, the spouse of the Ebonyi Governor, has made it possible for 53 prisoners in the Abakaliki Correction Service to be released.

According to Mrs. Nwifuru, the intervention was brought about by her visit to the center in October of last year, during which she learned that certain individuals had been found guilty and given the choice to pay a fine, but were unable to return home due to their incapacity to comply with the bail requirements.

She promised to incorporate the released prisoners into her empowerment initiatives so they could refrain from committing any crimes.

The governor's wife stated that the Better Health for Rural Women, Children, and Internally Displaced Persons Foundation (BERWO), her project, would handle this.

"I'm thrilled to be here to celebrate Christmas with you and to see God's hand at work in your lives.

"Today's event aligns with both my modest project, BERWO, which offers hope and support, and the people's charter of needs," she stated.

She claimed that another group of prisoners had been granted bail under certain circumstances, but that despite being aware of the state's predicament, the people were unable to fulfill the terms of their release.

"I brought up the plights of the people to her husband, the Governor, and he generously offered his support by agreeing to pay the court fines and the fulfillment of the bail requirements to secure their release," the woman clarified.

In order to avoid being a burden on society, Mrs. Nwifuru urged the released people to live by the laws of the land.

Since the emancipated people had learned their lessons and were prepared to start over, she urged the kind-hearted people to support them in their varied endeavors.

The state's attorney general and commissioner for justice, Mr. Bernard Odo, stated in his speech that a radical approach was needed to decongest the center.

Odo observed that although the Abakaliki Center can accommodate 387 prisoners, 1,466 were presently housed there.

"The comptroller has written to me that there is no longer any opportunity to accommodate others," he claimed, adding that his troops would not accept anyone else.

"During my assessment of one of the cells, I found that there are 126 people living in one cell with one toilet," stated Odo.

He called freedom of liberty the best of all essential human rights and praised the governor's wife for her generosity.

The attorney general urged the liberated individuals to make the most of their chance by abstaining from criminal activity.

He expressed disapproval of the nation's failing criminal justice system and demanded action to stop the worsening circumstances

Mrs. Nwifuru received praise from Mr. Benedict Oyoko, the Assistant Comptroller of Corrections, who oversees the Medium Security Center in Abakaliki, Ebonyi Command, and made a request for ongoing assistance.

Oyoko continued, saying that the exercise had protected the recipients from the center's overcrowding and potential for disease spread.

One of the recipients, Mr. Peter Nwofoke, thanked the governor's wife for her help and recounted his suffering, describing his rescue as divine intervention.