No excuse but incompetence!

The massive jail (prisons) reforms proposed three years back by President Asif Ali Zardari through Benazir Prisons Reform Package are still in doldrums as the authorities concerned have made zero progress on the badly-needed package, it has been learnt through reliable sources.

The financial managers in the Sindh government have also showed reluctance in releasing the desired funds for the jail reforms despite repeated requests by the prisons department, sources told Pakistan Today.

In October 2008, President Zardari had directed the Sindh government to prepare a comprehensive plan for jail reforms in accordance with the reports of parliamentary committees and international human rights organisations. However, president’s orders were reportedly ignored by his own minister and some other authorities.

Besides, the president had also directed the officials to facilitate poor prisoners and provide training and education to jail officials with special attention to improve the conditions of women prisoners’ cells. The prisoners should be provided with all basic facilities including the quality food, the president had directed.

In the wake of Zardari’s special directives, the Sindh’s prisons department had chalked out a plan – Benazir Prisons Reform Package – with an allocation of huge funds in early 2009, the sources said, adding the finance department had at least Rs 200 million funds available for the said purpose.

The sources said the prisons department had planned to ensure clean drinking water for the prisoners by installing water coolers, mini-theaters, small hospitals, toilets, compound walls, bathrooms, CCTV cameras, walkthrough gates and modern security equipments etc.

Moreover, the Sindh government had also allocated Rs 1,400 million for the programme in the budget of 2009-10 under the head of Benazir Prisons Reform Package. And, the funds of Rs 1,200 were released without any hindrance to the different Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in a move to ensure provision of free legal advocacy to the prisoners, surety money, payment of fine and free legal aid, the sources added.

The sources alleged that the finance department was delaying the release of funds for the jail reforms as the prisons department had clearly refused to pay any percentage to the finance department’s officials for the release of funds.

“Yes, there are at least Rs 200 million available with the Sindh’s finance department for the jail reforms but the latter was arbitrarily delaying the release of funds,” confirmed a high raking official of the prison department seeking anonymity.

“I do not know why the finance department is delaying the release of funds. But, I tell you that the funds were released last year in the month of May and we were supposed to utilise Rs 200 million just in a month”, he added.

The prisons department, later, surrendered the funds to the finance department as these huge funds could not be utilised in a very short span of time. The funds should be released as soon as possible for the said purpose, the official commented.