Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC) Weekly Subject Experts’ Presentation was held at Hall C, TY Buratai Block, Abuja. There was one presentation made by the Subject Experts on Eastern Europe.
The only presentation for the day was made by Brig Gen Ak Egwuagu (Rtd) subject experts on Eastern Europe, he focused on how Russia’s Opposition Leader Navalny Dies in Prison. Russia’s 47-year-old Alexei Navalny, described as Putin’s most prominent domestic foe and ‘high-profile nemesis’, died on Friday 16 Feb 24 at a penal colony in the Artic Circle, while serving a 19-year-jail term for ‘extremism’. He was jailed in 2021, after returning from Germany, where he was recovering from Novichok poisoning which he blamed on the Russian government.
In his analysis and lessons for Nigeria, Brig Gen Ak Egwuagu (Rtd) noted that, the unfortunate death of Russia’s opposition leader in prison which resulted to serious outrage and pointing of accusing fingers at Russia’s President and threats of sanctions on Russia, needs to be condemned but serves as a good lesson to other countries including Nigeria. He further stressed that, “Overcrowding, inhuman treatment, torture and lumping together of inmates, failure of the criminal justice system and overbearing attitude of the staff have been identified as serious challenges facing the Nigerian Correctional Service which must urgently be addressed to avoid embarrassment on the government like the recent experience of Russia”.
He recommended that, Federal Government of Nigeria through the National Assembly and the Ministry of Interior should set up and adequately equip mechanised farms and industrial complexes for all the correctional centres in the country to be run by a board of specialists under the Ministry of Interior, and also the Nigerian Judiciary should set up a judicial committee to carryout speedy retrial of all inmates at the correctional centres nationwide towards decongesting Correctional centres by 50% or less and cutting down on wasteful spending on the inmates.
