Prisons not Tuberculosis hotbeds, says NCoS

By Omeiza Ajayi

ABUJA: The Nigerian Correctional Service NCoS has rejected as misleading and inaccurate a report published by a newspaper which alleged that custodial facilities are now hotbeds for Tuberculosis.

Reacting in a statement on Sunday in Abuja, Service Spokesman, CSC Jane Osuji said the publication failed to reflect the true state of tuberculosis prevention and management within custodial centres across the country.

The Service said it welcomed responsible media engagement on public health and inmate welfare but was compelled to respond to what it described as sweeping generalizations, sensational narratives and inaccurate conclusions contained in the report published on January 3, 2026.

The NCoS disclosed that the medium had earlier contacted the Service for clarification on tuberculosis treatment regimens and control measures in custodial centres and was provided with detailed, factual and verifiable information outlining existing prevention, screening, diagnosis and treatment frameworks operating in line with national and international standards.

According to the Service, the eventual report, however, adopted a sensational tone by portraying custodial centres as unchecked tuberculosis “hotbeds,” an approach it described as unfair, misleading and unsupported by verified data.

The Service explained that tuberculosis remains a global public health challenge affecting both custodial and non-custodial populations and noted that Nigeria’s response is coordinated by the Federal Ministry of Health through the National Tuberculosis, Leprosy and Buruli Ulcer Control Programme in line with World Health Organization guidelines.

It stressed that the Nigerian Correctional Service is an active stakeholder in the national TB response and accords priority to prevention, early detection and effective treatment.

Contrary to the impression created by the report, the NCoS stated that health clinics operate across custodial facilities nationwide, supported by collaborations with the National TB programme, federal and state ministries of health, non-governmental organisations and development partners.

These partnerships, it said, enable routine screening, laboratory diagnosis, prompt commencement of treatment, adherence monitoring and referrals to secondary or tertiary health institutions when necessary, adding that inmates diagnosed with tuberculosis are placed on nationally approved treatment regimens at no cost.

The Service further challenged the credibility of the report, stating that names and cases cited in the publication could not be traced to records of any custodial centre under its supervision.

It said responsible journalism demands accuracy, balance and reliance on verified, facility-specific data rather than conjecture, selective testimonies or sensational headlines designed to misinform the public.

According to the NCoS, healthcare management within custodial centres includes medical screening at the point of admission, periodic health assessments, infection prevention and control measures, isolation of infectious cases where clinically indicated and structured referral systems to external hospitals.

While acknowledging challenges such as ageing infrastructure and rising inmate populations, the Service said these reflect broader systemic issues within the national health and justice sectors and do not amount to indifference to inmate welfare.

The Service also cited its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic as evidence of its institutional capacity to manage communicable diseases, recalling that through proactive screening, isolation protocols and inter-agency collaboration with public health authorities, custodial centres nationwide recorded no active cases despite being classified globally as high-risk settings.

While admitting that congestion persists in some urban custodial facilities, the NCoS said it remains actively engaged in decongestion through jail delivery exercises, collaboration with the judiciary and the expansion of non-custodial measures provided under the Nigerian Correctional Service Act.

It also disclosed that the Federal Government has approved the recruitment of additional medical and healthcare professionals to strengthen health service delivery, disease surveillance and treatment programmes across custodial centres nationwide.

The Nigerian Correctional Service reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding the health, dignity and human rights of persons in custody, emphasizing that custodial health is inseparable from public health, while insisting that it remains open to constructive criticism but rejects reports it described as misleading, alarmist and designed to portray the Service in an unjustifiably negative light.

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