Petty Offenders To Be Released In Bid To Decongest Kenya Prisons
State for Correctional Services Principal Secretary Dr Salome Beacco (centre) with senior prison officers outside Kericho Prison
By MKT Reporter
The government is planning to decongest all Gok prisons in the country for all petty offenders, currently serving a sentence of five years and below.
Correctional Services Principal Secretary Dr. Salome Beacco has directed probation officers in the counties to prepare a full list of offenders serving five years and below.
“We want to see how far we can go to decongest the prisons and how many of the inmates will be released. The probation officers will take a full list of the offenders serving five years and below. They will take a review of them and see how they can be released to serve under the community service order,” Dr. Beacco said.
The aim is to see how far the prisons can go to decongest the inmates and to see how many of them will be released.
The process of enhancing training of offenders has already started, with 52 inmates graduating in law and others in vocational works like carpentry, electrical works, plumbing, and welding.
The PS further stated that high standards of cleanliness must be maintained in all prisons to make the facilities conducive and habitable.
Dr. Beacco believes that freeing petty offenders to serve their sentences in society and contributing to building the nation is one way to solve decongestion in prisons.
She also emphasised the importance of allowing petty offenders, like being drunk and disorderly, to go back to their families and help take care of them.
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