– for smuggling ‘ganja’ into Lusignan Prison

THE seven prison wardens suspected of facilitating the smuggling of cannabis into the Lusignan Prison have been interdicted from duty and suspended without pay.

This was confirmed by a senior prison source yesterday, and according to the police, legal advice is being sought about charges as investigations continue.

Acting Director of Prisons Gladwin Samuels recently called on prison warders to desist from trafficking contraband in the prisons, and warned those guilty of doing so to understand the consequences, as the law will take its course.

He made the point that ridding the penal system of contraband should not be the goal of just a few, but of everyone, as it needs to be done collectively.

Noting that the Guyana Prison Service (GPS) has been tasked with creating an environment where the focus on rehabilitation is done with passion, Samuels said:

“We are tasked with creating an environment where the people under our charge can respect us; respect our office, and see us as role models for whom they can become,” he said, adding:
“If we support them and their families in contravening the laws of the prison, we are not helping them; we are in fact condoning the very activities that caused them to be in prison in the first place; we are telling them it is okay to be lawless.”