In recent a visit to Mile 2 Central Prison, many inmates have shared their emotional struggles regarding the lack of adequate medical supplies and the ineffective healthcare system.
These challenges according to inmates, significantly impact their quality of life and overall well-being.
Inmates have voiced concerns over the scarcity of essential medical resources, which exacerbate existing health issues, particularly for those with chronic conditions.
The healthcare system within the prisons has been criticized for its inability to provide timely and effective medical care, leaving many feeling neglected and hopeless.
Additionally, the issue of presidential pardon has stirred frustration among inmates. Many feel that the criteria for receiving a pardon are unfair, leading to a sense of injustice and despair.
According to Sainey Camara, an inmate, "this place is no more a prison. It's a rehabilitation center. It is considered a prison in the former regime, due to how people were tortured, and faced with many difficulties."
"However, it's now a rehabilitation center, but also with terrible conditions of health. Inmates are getting sick day in and out resulting in some dying all because of lack of medicines," he stressed.
He further revealed that doctors in most cases would diagnose an inmate and prescribe all the necessary medicines for him/her, and give him/her the prescription to give to his/her family members to buy medicine for them. And sometimes, they diagnose and refer you to a private hospital, where sometimes inmates are asked to pay huge amount of money and if the family members are not available or financially strong, the situation leads to further complications," he disclosed.
Speaking on the presidential pardon, he dilated that that they should give the responsibility of choosing inmates deserving of pardon to prison officers as they are the people who can recommend certain inmates as they are with them on a daily basis.
"The prison is congested currently in the sense that a mattress should be used by a single inmate but it's shared with two or three people. And at night, we sweep the floor, spread mattresses all over for people to use," he lamented.
"In some instances at night, with we step on each other unintentionally due to lack of space and this often leads to quarrel among ourselves."
"So based on all these difficult conditions, we the entire prisoners are on our knees appealing to the president to let him have mercy on us and pardon us for we have realised our mistakes and willing to positively contribute to national development."
He expressed gratitude to the entire prison department, ranging from the directors, to the last rank, saying, "all of them are doing their utmost best to make sure that we live in a better condition while we serve our time. Sometimes they do even deduct from their own salaries and buy us sanitizers and other necessities, hand it over to us to help ourselves."
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On her part, Jennifer, elaborated on the presidential pardon, stating that they are family people who made mistakes. "We have made mistakes that landed us here. I left children that need motherly presence in their lives while they grow and I am pleading with the government to consider us for pardons.
"Some are given big sentences for minor crimes and it is considered unfair. We have regretted our actions and pleading for forgiveness."
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