July 29, 2021
Chief Minister Hon JJ Saffa has urged stakeholders at the Sierra Leone Correctional Service (SLCS) to expedite the operationalization of relocating the Pademba Road Prisons to a location outside the capital city of Freetown.
The Hon Chief Minister was addressing stakeholders at the Internal Affairs Ministry on Monday July 26th 2021 at the Ministry’s Conference room.
Hon JJ Saffa noted that the dream of relocating the maximum prison is long overdue especially when you take into consideration the high intake of inmates. He admonished the Director General of SLCS to furnish his office with a programmatic briefing with timelines on the road map to achieve this objective in two weeks.
According to the Acting Director General Mr. Turay, there are currently about 4,478 nationwide inmates, with 1,888 convictions, 1,391 in Remand, 106 Condemned, 1,027 on Trial and 29 serving life imprisonments. These figures the acting DG reiterated require serious consideration especially when the approved personnel for the entire Correctional Centre of 3,550 is yet to be achieved. As at present, there is personnel strength of 2,109.
After addressing the issue dealing with the immediate relocation of the Pademba road prisons, the Chief Minister used the platform to address other issues affecting the ministry of Internal affairs as a whole.
The Chief Minister Hon Jacob Jusu Saffa used the occasion to meet with all the stakeholders in the Ministry of Internal Affairs to abreast them with his role as Chief Minister and further discuss with them how his office can work with them to achieve their work programs.
Addressing his audience, Hon JJ Saffa cautioned that having a Ministry of Internal Affairs running and upto date is a key in achieving domestic cohesion and stability.
Chief Minister JJ Saffa also urged other agencies such as the Sierra Leone Police, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the NCRA and Immigration Agencies to expedite their ongoing reform engagements. Chief Minister told the Chief Medical Examiner Dr Orwizz and the Director General of the Drug Enforcement Agency that Government was seriously concerned about drug abuse especially among young people in general and school pupils in particular.
Responding, the Internal Affairs Minister Hon Panda Noah on behalf of all the Agencies under the Ministry assured the Chief Minister of their firm commitment to meet the new self-assessment portal that will soon be launched by the Chief Minister’s delivery unit.
Our Ministry is now better positioned and we can assure the Chief Minister that delivery of services as per our work programs will be given high priority, the Minister concluded.