Rivers
Group Urges Improved Welfare For Prison Inmates

An expartriate teacher of |Comprehensive Secondary School, Borikiri, Port Harcourt, Mr K. D Smith (right), presenting a plaque to the best Mathematics student in the senior category,during a Maths school quiz competition organised by Old Boys Association of the school, recently.
A conglomeration of Pen
tecostal Churches in Port Harcourt, under the auspices of the United Christian Prison Ministry (UCPM) has canvassed improved welfare scheme for prison inmates to enhance their total rehabilitation back to the society.
Executive Secretary of the Organisation, Elder Shederack Igwe, who spoke with The Tide in an interview, decried the poor state of prisons in the country, which he noted had hampered the process of social, psychological and spiritual build up of the inmates back to the society.
Igwe commended the Judiciary for its efforts at decongesting the Port Harcourt Prison and called on related agencies, NGOs and concerned individuals to assist in the provision of social welfare and infrastructural facilities to enhance the well being of the inmates.
According to reports from the organisation, the Port Harcourt Prison which was built with a capacity to accommodate 800 inmates presently host 3000 inmates.
The body also advocated reforms in the prisons to enhance the status of Nigerian Prisons as centres of rehabilitation, particularly in the speedy trial of inmates.
As part of its contributions towards the moral and spiritual upliftment of inmates in the Port Harcourt Prison, the Executive Secretary said the body had completed a Cathedral in the Prison billed for commissioning soon.
He added that the organisation had also established conventional seminaries and theological institutions within the prison to avail the inmates the opportunity to repent of the shortcomings and return back to God.
The body also emphasised the need for a collective effort towards prison evangelism as a yardstick to addressing issues of criminality and other anti-social behaviours in the society, noting that parents had a lot of work to do towards the moral upbringing of their children.
Taneh Beemene
Rivers
Rivers CJ To Sanction Lawyers Who Refuse To Comply With ADR Compliance
The Rivers state Chief Judge, Justice SIMONE CHIBUZOR-AMADI has given an indication to sanction any lawyer who fail to comply with directive of a judge in the state to transferred a case to Rivers State Multi Door Courthouse for Alternatives Dispute Resolution.
Justice AMADI stated this during a brief ceremony held at the chief judge auditorium in port Harcourt Friday held to hand over certificates of operation to two private ADR chambers on Precarious Dispute Resolution Services and Harmony Arbitration and mediation center .
He urged the two private ADR centres to be diligent in the discharge of their duties and warned against compromising the standard of Alternative Dispute Resolution, ADR but should observed the regulations set out in collaboration regulation by the state Multi Door Court House.
Earlier in a address, the Director of the State Multi Door Courthouse, VICTOR NWEKE esq, highlighted some of the achievements of the Multi Door Courthouse especially in decongestion of court rooms.
NWEKE while disclosing how the department certified the two private ADR centres called for serious punitive measures be taken against any lawyer who fail to comply with a case referred to Multi Door Court House by a judge or magistrates in the state.
In her acceptance speech on behalf of the two certified private ADR centres, ALICE NIMI commended the State Judiciary and Multi Door Courthouse for the approval and assured that all the rules and regulations spelt out will be followed.
In a related development; the Rivers State Judiciary has assured its readiness to collaborate with Nigerian Securityding Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC in using Alternative Dispute Resolution to resolve some of the issues in their office.
The state Chief Judge , Justice SIMONE CHIBUZOR-AMADI made the promise when he received in audience the Zonal Commander of NSCDC, Assistant Commandant General, AYINLA TALYE OLOWO and his team who paid him a courtesy visit in his office , Friday where issuees ADR utilization took centre stage.
He used the opportunity to brief his visitors on the hurdles judges faces daily in the court room and the need for the decongestion of the court room , stressing that one judge handle more than three hundred cases but that if lawyers and litigants adopt ADR practice court rooms can be releive of the daily congestions.
The state Chief Judge however urged NSCDC to ensure a wider sensitization of the members of the public on the practice of ADR for a better awareness and knowledge.
Earlier in his speech, the Zonal Commander of NSCDC, Assistant Commandant General, AYINLA TALYE-OLOWO said the visit was to seek collaboration on the use of ADR in resolving some issues which he insisted would help decongest the courtrooms.
Our correspondent reports officials of the Rivers State Multi Door Courthouse led by the Director, VICTOR NWEKE led the team of NSCDC on a technical session where information on how to the fully in cooperated into the Multi Door Courthouse and operation of ADR will be emphasized.
Akujobi Amadi