By Shadrack Nyakoe
The government of Kenya plans to decongest prisons across the country by releasing petty offenders currently serving sentences of five years or less.
Correctional Services Principal Secretary Salome Beacco has instructed county probation officers to compile a comprehensive list of petty offenders.
“We are assessing how to reduce overcrowding in prisons and determine how many inmates can be released,” said Beacco.
The goal is to transfer eligible offenders to the Community Service Order program, allowing them to serve their sentences while contributing to society.
The initiative aligns with ongoing efforts to rehabilitate inmates, with 52 individuals recently graduating in law and various vocational skills, including carpentry, electrical work, plumbing, and welding.
Dr. Beacco stressed the need to maintain high standards of cleanliness in all prisons to make the facilities more habitable.
She believes that reintegrating petty offenders into society, particularly those convicted of minor offenses like public drunkenness, will help reduce prison populations while allowing them to return to their families and contribute to the community.
“We want to see how far we can go in decongesting the prisons and determine the number of inmates eligible for release,” reiterated Beacco.
Probation officers will review each case and assess the possibility of releasing offenders to serve under the community service order program.
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