EXAMINATION PRISON ADMINISTRATION AND CRIME PREVENTION IN NIGERIA.

EXAMINATION PRISON ADMINISTRATION AND CRIME PREVENTION IN NIGERIA.

CHAPTER ONE

1.1.           Introduction

Crime is any act or behaviour which violates the norms (normative behaving) of a society. This would mean that a criminal should be seen as any person who breaks any of the rules or norm of behaviour by which society is governed and has the possibility of affecting the wellbeing of other members of the society.(Roth 2006) Therefore, the importance of crime prevention and control, maintenance of law and order to the development and growth of a society,both in the physical and economic sense, cannot be over emphasized.

Roth (2006) is of the opinion that ‘it is only amind that is secured and at peace that can rationally address the issues of procreation,economic development and societal growth. A disturbed mind is a restless anddistraught personality. It is therefore imperative to have peace and order in thesociety to assure its growth and development.The role of law enforcement in the maintenance of peace and order as well as crime prevention in the society is aforegone conclusion.

Every man by nature is selfish and self-centered, in most case;he needs the presence of the state institution of law enforcement to be able to actright. By its establishment philosophy, the Nigerian Prisons Service is an institution meant to administer penal treatment to adult offenders. It isan important and   indispensable institution in the bid to reduce crime in the society. On the basis of imprisonment policy, the Nigerian Prisons Service was established to manage criminals in prison yards. These constitutional functions empower the prison operatives to:

1. Keep convicted offenders (prisoners) in safe custody
2. Keep awaiting trial inmates in custody, until law courts demand their production
3. Punish offenders as prescribed by the law courts
4. Reform the convicted prisoners
5. Rehabilitate and re-integrate prisoners who have completed the sentences in the prison. (Hannah, 2012)

EXAMINATION PRISON ADMINISTRATION AND CRIME PREVENTION IN NIGERIA.