Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State has urged inmates of correctional centres in the country not to despair.
He also assured the inmates of the correctional centre in the Afokang area of Calabar that when he conferred with the authorities of the centre he would intervene in some of their cases.
Gov Otu spoke inside the facility yesterday when he and his wife, Rev Eyoanwan Out, celebrated the Eid el-Kabir with the inmates.
He said, “We are all in the world. Sometimes we experience bad, sometimes good. I am here to assure you that all hope is not lost. We decided to come and celebrate here with you because you deserve it.
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“I will meet with the leadership of the correctional centre and some of your cases that need intervention; I will endeavour to handle.”
The First Lady of the state, Rev Mrs Otu, who organised the event, said it was aimed at giving the inmates a sense of belonging and to share the love as exemplified by the sacrifice of Prophet Ibraham.
Speaking earlier, the Controller of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) in Cross River State, Mr Adeyinka Adebayo, expressed appreciation to the governor and his wife for the visit.
He explained that the Afokang prisons had a total of 573 inmates, with 67 on the death row, and pleaded with the governor to assist in providing some basic needs of the facility.