–modernisation plan underway, says Ramjattan

GOVERNMENT has opted to have prisons in Guyana remain under the control of the State, but will unveil a modernisation plan which will allow for those institutions to be run by a Board of Governors, Public Security Minister, Khemraj Ramjattan said.
He was at the time speaking at a press conference held at his Brickdam office on Thursday.
Following the most devastating fire at the Georgetown Prison on Sunday last, the Private Sector Commission called for the prison system to be privatised.
Several countries around the world, including the United States have privately-operated prisons.
But that will not be an option for Guyana, as the government has ruled out the proposal which was made by a consultancy firm.
According to Minister Ramjattan, Dr Trevor Hamilton and Associates International Management Consultants was contracted to identify options for the modernisation of the Guyana Prison System.
Among the recommendations were: for the prison system to be privatised; for it to be regionalised; a combination of both privatisation and regionalisation; or for the system to remain under the control of the State, but under the direct control of a Board of Governors.
The director of prisons would be replaced by an executive director.
The public security minister noted that after careful considerations and deliberations, the government opted to keep the system under the control of the State, with the installation of a Board of Governors. He said that under that new governance structure, several amendments to the law were also recommended.
To ensure the modernisation plan is well coordinated, Minister Ramjattan disclosed that Professor Duke Pollard has begun examining the amendments needed for the Prisons Act, so as to accommodate the modernisation of the prison system.
Government has also been using content from a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) report to build on its modernisation plan.
Observers have been critical of the government for not implementing some of the recommendations made in the CoI which could have possibly prevented Sunday’s fire.

A LOT DONE
However, Minister Ramjattan was keen to note that “a lot was done since the recommendations were made by the Commission”.

He said most of the implementation work “cost a lot of money, so things will take some time”. And even with this being the case, he maintained that a lot of work had been done to have a safer and more secured prison system.
Specifically referenced was an expansion project at the Mazaruni Prison, currently being embarked upon by the government.
The minister reasoned that the project will take a few years to be fully realised because it is a major project which demands heavy capital investments. He suggested that the project could cost the State more than $2B.
In the 2017 budget, government approved $278M for the expansion project. This money, Minister Ramjattan explained, will be used to develop the foundation for the expansion.
He said next year, budgetary allocations will target the actual building which is intended to be four stories.
The expansion will entail the construction of solid cast foundations, wall supports and internal fixtures such as wiring, utilities and other features being built over a one-year period.
The new section, which will be adjacent to a part of the old prison, will also feature automated locks, sprinkler systems and forced ventilation.
Twelve concrete houses are also being built to accommodate prison officers stationed there, at a cost of $178 million dollars.

FIRST STEP
The minister had said previously that this was the first step towards building a maximum-security prison which will accommodate some 400 prisoners. The successful completion of this project is expected to ease the problems of overcrowding at all other prison facilities across Guyana.
“… it will take some time for construction. We have to go through the bidding process and all of that, but it will be a major project. So it will take time,” the minister said.
Earlier this week, the minister had said it is not feasible for the government to build a brand new prison albeit it would accommodate 2000+ prisoners. He estimated a project of that magnitude to cost the state more than $6B – an amount he said that could not be afforded.