Nigeria has abolished hard labour sentences for prisoners serving in the oil-rich nation’s jails.
The Senate on Tuesday passed the Prison Act Amendment Bill that expunged the provision from the Nigerian Prison Act.
Senators said the harsh provision was inherited from colonial masters.
The passage of the Bill was sequel to the amendment of the Prison Act, which was presented by Senate Committee on Interior chaired by Senator Atiku Bagudu.
The Committee’s Chair however canvassed for the incorporation of the Nigeria Prison reform into Subsidy Reinvestment Empowerment Programme (SURE-P).
The bill is titled Prison Act CAP P29 LFN (Repeal and Re-enactment) bill 2011. The Nigerian Prison and Correctional Service.
According to section 8(1) of the amended Bill, “Hard labour is an inheritance from colonial era and should be deleted and replaced with the prison labour.”
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