MWUN to help members in various prison custodies regain freedom

Apparently moved by the actions of the Concerned Seafarers who visited some seafarers languishing in prison custodies in Lagos with aim to assist where necessary to regain their freedom, the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) has also said plans are underway to lend helping hands to its members suffering same fate.

The Nigerian Prisons Service through the Deputy Controller of Prisons in charge of Ikoyi prisons, Tolu Ogunsakin recently decried the congestion of the facility.

DCP Ogunsakin said that the facility, built for convicts in 1955, with a capacity for 800 inmates, presently had 3,138 prisoners out of which 2,644 are awaiting trial detainees while 494 are convicts.

Ogunsakin urged the government to introduce parole system, community services, accelerated hearings, fines and warnings among others in order to help decongest the facility.

The President General of MWUN, Comrade Adewale Adeyanju disclosed said on Wednesday in Lagos that the Union had met with executive of Merchant Navy and had fixed a date for a meeting where they will discuss the issue and map out plans for the visit to the prisons.

The labour union leader however lauded the initiatives of their senior staff counterpart to visit prison and making efforts to set seafarers free

Adeyanju also quipped that the two associations would engage the service of a lawyer who would revisit the cases of seafarers to regain their freedom.

Speaking further, he said in making moves to extend the hand of fellowship to the inmates, the issue of their genuine membership of the union would be a priority.

He added that there are some of the sailors who embarked on illegal activities at sea and at the end got caught in the process.

He said, “Initially, the Merchant Navy did not carry us along on this issue but fortunately for us, I met the President in Singapore and we discussed about it.

“The International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) also raised the issue of Nigeria seafarers in prison and i told my big brother that we will address the issue when we get back to Nigeria to find a lasting solution to release those that are Innocent.

“However, I will like to inform you that the Merchant Navy and MWUN have decided to synergize for ratings and officers in prison to regain their freedom through the help of a lawyer.

“By next week we will hold a joint meeting, and then fix a date for us to visit the facility in Ikoyi.

Aside the Ikoyi prison, Comrade Adeyanju also maintained that the union had decided to also visit other prisons across the country to know the conditions of seafarers as part of efforts to make case for those who are unlawfully detained.

He added that the joint visitation would be an eye opener for the unions because according to him, the unions must be careful in this process to identify who their members are as a way of seeking justice.

“Our visit to the prison is basically to find out if truly they are Innocent and to also identify those who are our members,” he stated.