Social media reports that claimed 15 domestic employees of former President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, Dame Patience Jonathan, were unlawfully detained at the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Okaka have been refuted as untrue and misleading by the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), Bayelsa State Command.
The NCoS vehemently denied allegations that Dame Patience Jonathan met in secret with senior correctional officials
in Bayelsa and that the inmates had been held without trial since 2019 for alleged theft in a statement released by
ASC I G.T. Isari, the Command’s Public Relations Officer.
“These statements are unfounded and are being spread to tarnish the image of the Nigerian Correctional Service,” the
statement read.
Clarifying the facts, the Command explained that the individuals in question were lawfully remanded in custody by
High Court 1 of Bayelsa State and have been attending trial as scheduled. They were present in court on March 10
and 11, 2025, and most recently on April 3, 2025, with the next hearing set for April 17, 2025.
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“The said inmates have been treated fairly and humanely while in custody, and their fundamental human rights are
respected,” Isari added.
The statement emphasised that no individual can be admitted into any custodial centre in Nigeria without a valid
court-issued remand warrant, stressing that all 15 individuals were admitted in line with due legal process.
The NCoS also reminded the public to ignore the “fabricated” reports meant to create needless anxiety and reiterated
that the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Okaka is still one of the most tranquil establishments in the nation.
Under the direction of Acting Controller General of Corrections Sylvester Ndidi Nwakuche, the Service is dedicated to
the secure, compassionate, and legal custody of prisoners as well as their reformation and reintegration into society,
the statement continued, assuring the public.
