Africa-Press – Namibia. POPULAR Democratic Movement member of parliament Thimotheus Shihumbu has blamed the Namibia correctional facilities commissioner general Raphael Hamunyela over the smuggling of a cellphone into Fishrot-accused James Hatuikulipi’s prison cell.
Shihumbu wrote a letter to Hamunyela on Monday after Hatuikulipi was again found with a mobile phone in his prison cell last week Wednesday. In his letter, Shihumbu said he is concerned by media reports that the Namibian Correctional Service (NCS) facilities are in total disarray and insisted that anybodyshould enter the correctional facilities without any high-level security checks.
Shihumbu said Hatuikulipi, who is the alleged mastermind in the Fishrot corruption scandal, has been found with smart mobile devices, together with his co-accused, on two occasions.
He alleged that someone within the institution is collaborating with the accused persons in their efforts to interfere with the administration of justice.
He noted that the use of mobile phones in prison cells is a threat to the criminal justice system and the use of mobile phones by prison inmates is increasing at an alarming rate. Shihumbu said there is a need to review the measures currently used to detect mobile phones to sanction these illicit articles.
Hamunyela yesterday said the letter written to his office by Shihumbu is a political statement. He added that he cannot comment on political matters as he is an administrator and not a politician.
Regarding cross-checking with other Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries to see how other correctional facilities are run, he said: “Most SADC countries visit Namibia to benchmark and see how things are done procedurally. I don’t know which countries he wants me to learn from,” he said.
Hamunyela said the smuggling of cellphones into correctional facilities is hounding NCS and correctional facilities the world over. “I am a member of the International Correction and Prison Association, and these are the things we are discussing. Even in the most developed countries, they are faced with the problem of contraband reaching the facilities,” Hamunyela added.
He added that correctional officers also assist in the smuggling of mobile phones into cells, and inmates pay correctional officers bribes to bring them (offenders) the contraband.
Hamunyela said inmates can request for money from their families and buy expensive phones and give anything between N$3 000 and N$4 000 to correctional officers.
“Whether we are searching officers, we are still facing the same problem. One of the things we are not considering are the officers’ lunchboxes…,” he said, adding that there are reports that some officials hide cellphones in their lunchboxes.
“They put the cellphone [first] and the food on top and they bring it into the facilities. Inmates are offering police officers money in order for them to smuggle in cellphones,” Hamunyela said. He said some prison officers expose what is happening at the facilities.
“We used to apprehend some officers and they used to explain what happens. Some say they used to be forced by inmates to bring them cellphones and if they decline they are reported to the authorities,” he said.
He urged members of parliament to visit the facilities to get a clear picture of how correctional facilities operate. “They make the laws and approve the funds … it is their responsibility to visit the facilities and see what needs to be improved,” Hamunyela said.
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