Maula Prisoners Asks Mutharika to Consider Mass Pardon, Improve Prisons Living Conditions

Maula Prisoners Asks Mutharika to Consider Mass Pardon, Improve Prisons Living Conditions

Maula Prisoners (Photo by State House)

Prisoners at Maula Prison in the Capital Lilongwe have asked President Mutharika to deal with number of challenges prisoners and Prison warders are facing at the prison.

Speaking at Maula Prison following Mutharika’s visit as one way of commemorating his second anniversary of 2013 arrest over treason charges, Thomas Chafera a 2010 convict serving eight year jail term spoke highly of the need for mass pardon and reduce congestion in cells and lack of some necessary materials

Overcrowded Maula Prisoners 

Thomas asked President Mutharika an issue which attracted loud cheer from fellow prisoners when he mentioned that "pardon procedure should benefit everyone." He suggested that it could be reducing one month of everyone’s prison sentence because current process benefits few.

He said lengthy remands without trial for more than 5 years, illegal entries by foreigners from Ethiopia and Burundi are major causes of cells congestion.

Maula Prison

Chafera added that in addition to stiff sentences in courts and few cells at the prison, the congestion problem is also a result of difficulties to make an appeal at High Court since, very often an appeal process would take them "whole prison sentence period."

Mutharika promises these
Maula Prison Officers better living conditions
(Photo by State House)

Thomas Chafera further asked for better housing for Prison Warders because their dilapidated houses makes one see no difference between prisoners and Prison Officers a probable development which Commissioner Lameck Banda, Maula Prison Officer In charge made him to succinctly say "there are a lot of challenges a this Prison" when was asked to speak.

Some female prisoners at Maula

Other challenges the Prisoner highlighted includes few vehicles to transport prisoners for court hearing, lack of blankets, clothes especially for women, cups and plates because they receive food in plastic bags.

In his reaction President Mutharika said has noted everything and will strive to improve conditions at the prison and take remandees for trial.

Cross section of Maula Prisoners 

On pardon he said the committee on the matter will continue following a right procedure and continue ensuring that good mannered prisoners who have finished half of their prison sentence are pardoned.

Some female prisoners at Maula Prison

Mutharika brought to the prison, three tones of laundry soap, 400 litres of chlorine, 200 thousand of pain killers, and food items; 250 packs of maize flour, 40 bags of beans, 200 bags of maize, bags of rice, 200 litres of cooking oil, beef meat and 550 bales of sugar.

Wednesday afternoon Muthariaka was at Maula Prison as walk down memory lane of 11 March, 2013 arrest and detention when government accused him together with 10 other officials on treason charges following Bingu Was Mutharika's demise.

Peter Mutharika was taken to Maula Prison but refused to stay there to a gun point. He told authorities that he and co-accused could not stay there because are not convicted of the alleged crime.