Written by Shehu Abubakar, who
was in Kuje Sunday, 03 February
2013 05:04
in
Share
SocButtons plugin
.. Buys own bucket, cup, soap
The arrival of a black jeep at the
premises of the Kuje prison
signalled yet the arrival of an
important personality. Little did
the armed guards of the Nigeria
Prisons Service guarding the
premises know who was in the
car until a man in white flowing
gown alighted. Then they knew it
was Honourable Farouk Lawan,
the erstwhile chairman of the
House of Representatives
committee that probed the oil
subsidy regime.
Though a Very Important
Personality (VIP), Farouk Lawan
was accompanied with a remand
warrant ordering his detention
in Kuje prison as an Awaiting
Trial Man (ATM) with clear
instruction that he should be
produced before Justice
Madashiru Oniyangi of Abuja
High Court on February 8.
Lawan and the secretary of his
committee, Boniface Emenalo,
were charged for allegedly
demanding and collecting bribe
of $620,000 amounting to N97.4
million from a business mogul,
Chief Femi Otedola, during the
committee’s probe sittings.
Shortly after Lawan and Emenalo
alighted from the vehicle that
took them to the prison yard, a
prison officer standing guard at
the main entrance collected the
warrant from a plain cloth
security man who escorted the
accused persons to the prison.
After reading through the
warrant, he turned and knocked
at the iron gate of the prison.
Someone from inside peeped
from a small opening and the
guard outside asked him to open
the gate. The officer on the other
side opened the gate.
Farouk, who looked very sad was
forcing a smile on his face and
waved twice at the small crowd
of prison officials who were
standing outside and gazing at
him. As he slowly walked into the
prison, the guard and other non-
armed security personnel on the
entourage filed in behind him.
Though this reporter could not
follow him into the premises to
witness what transpired at the
reception block, housing the
welfare and office of the officer-
in-charge of the prison yard
where all the admission
procedures of inmates were
done, Sunday Trust gathered that
Lawan was there for about 46
minutes before he was escorted
by two warders into the yard.
A prison official who played a
vital role in processing the
admission of Farouk Lawal into
the prison told this reporter that
the process of Farouk and
Boniface’s admission were
carried out in the office of the
officer-In-charge of the prison.
“Our O/C tried to calm them
down, explaining to them that
several prominent Nigerians had
been remanded in that prison
and were released. He was very
optimistic that they would also
regain their freedom ultimately.”
“He pleaded with them to relax
their minds and cooperate with
the prison officials, assuring
them that they would not regret
their stay with us. They were not
given any prison uniforms to
wear. The Awaiting Trial Men
(ATM) also have their uniforms
differents from convicts. But they
were not given uniforms,” the
source said.
The source added, however, that
Lawan’s flowing gown, cap,
wristwatch, shoes and other
personal belongings, like phones
and money, were all collected
from him and deposited with the
welfare unit of the prison.
When the process of his
admission was completed,
Lawan was seen escorted from
the reception/administrative
block into the main prison yard.
This reporter was watching
when at a point, he and his two
escorts stopped at the end of the
veranda and a gate by their left
was opened, leading them to the
ATM cells.
Sunday Trust learnt that Lawan
was not ushered into the main
ATM cell. “He is being kept at the
Condemned Criminal Cell (CCC),
which is housing both their
various jail terms. The CCC is
targeted as the VIP section of the
prison where we keep important
personalities and people we
consider to be of good
character,” our reporter
gathered.
While the main cells contain
inmates in their hundreds, the
CCC contains only two persons at
a time. In addition to that
gesture, Lawan and a few other
inmates at the CCC have their cells
open 24 hours a day.
“Even when we leave their cells
open, they cannot go out; they
can only come out of the cell to
the corridors that are fenced
round with iron rods.
“Not every ATM in the prison has
a mattress, but we were able to
get mattresses for the two of
them. The prison authorities
provide three square meals for
every inmate in this prison. But, I
saw people bring food for him
from outside. Eating the prison
food is optional. He also made
provision for bucket, cup and
soap for himself,” a source said.
When this reporter returned to
the prison yesterday and had
access to the yard, Farouk was
seen at one of the CCC cells at a ‘V’
shaped block leading to the main
ATM cell before the convicts’ cell.
Efforts to say hello to him were
frustrated by the armless prison
warders guarding the cell who
said Lawan was sleeping in the
noisy environment and should,
therefore, be allowed to relax.
Though from outside the
corridors the reporter could see
through Lawan’s room and the
water system toilet in it, it was
not, however, clear if he was
alone in the cell room or sharing
it with another inmate.
“Every cell at the CCC has a toilet
and as you can see, nobody can
use curtains or anything to cover
his window or door. They are all
made of iron rods so that we can
see from here everything
happening in the cell. But the
inmates cannot use the toilets in
their cells as there is not enough
water to always flush. They come
out of the cells to use the toilets
at the corridor,” the cell guard
said.
Another guard outside the
prison yard told this reporter
that he saw Farouk Lawal join
other Muslim convicts to say their
afternoon prayer in the mosque
built behind his cell room,
adding, the laws are relaxed for
him. That is what they do to most
responsible inmates that we
know will not make any attempts
to escape.’

http://sundaytrust.com.ng/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12854%3Afarouk-lawan-kept-in-condemned-criminals-cell-of-kuje-prison&catid=54%3Alead-stories&Itemid=127