The Chief Judge, of Ogun State, Justice Mosunmola Dipeolu on Wednesday, granted Amnesty to 21 inmates from the five Nigeria Correctional Services in the state, as part of efforts to decongest correctional centers across the state.

Dipeolu, visited the centers located at Ibara in Abeokuta, Oba in Obafemi-Owode as well as those in Ilaro, Sagamu, and Ijebu-Ode during the three-day tour which started on Monday and ended on Wednesday.

The CJ released six inmates from the Oba correctional center, four in Ibara, Five in Ilaro, three in Sagamu, while three inmates were released in Ijebu-Ode correctional center respectively.

Speaking with newsmen shortly after the visit, Dipeolu said the exercise was to decongest the correctional centers in the state.

She lamented that all the correctional centers in the state were congested, adding that the inmates were more than the capacity the centers could accommodate.

She, however, urged the Ministry of Interior in charge of the Nigerian Correctional service to look into the expansion of the correctional centers to solve the problem of decongestion.

She said, ” We need to expand the facilities, jail delivery exercise can not do much in most of the correctional centers, the facilities are not adequate to take care of the level of crime, the crime rate is rising due to economic situation of the county.”

She also appealed to Departments of Directors of Public Prosecution of the Ministry of justice to work effectively in the discharge of their duties toward speedy dispensation of justice which would help in eliminating congestion in prisons

Dipeolu, however, admonished the freed inmates to make the best use of the amnesty by shunning crime and criminal activities capable of bringing them back to prison.

The officer in charge of Sagamu Custodial center, Mr. Bolaji Joseph stressed that it was important to provide court cells.

He said it would provide security for awaiting trial inmates from the custodial center.