DIRECTOR of Prisons, Gladwin Samuels, has proceeded on four months accumulated leave with immediate effect, on Tuesday, after being notified by the Home Affairs Ministry. As a result, Deputy Director of Prisons, Niclon Elliot, has been tasked to oversee the operations of the prisons ‘until further notice’.
Samuels, who served in the capacity of acting Director of Prisons for a number of years, was confirmed to the substantive post less than one year ago.
Guyana has a prison population of close to 1,800 inmates and an imprisonment rate which is “extremely” alarming, a problem which Samuels said could be addressed via alternative forms of sentencing.

He was, at the time, speaking at a virtual launch of the Regional Comparative IDB report, which focuses on imprisonment in the Caribbean for the period 2016 to 2019.
Samuels had said, back then, that social intervention and support, combined with punishment and encouragement, are much more effective in preventing crimes, and if an inmate is not exposed to opportunities that contribute to positive changes, leaving prison and returning to a life of crime would likely be the first option.
As such, he noted that since the research was done, Guyana’s recidivism rate reduced from 35 per cent to 28 per cent. “Reform is very much needed and more aggressive and meaningful programmes need to be offered so as to prepare inmates with the required skillset or educational training so that they can be more effective upon their release back into society,” Samuels noted.

Guyana’s prison population and the holding capacity has significantly decreased over the years in the aftermath of a fire at the Camp Street Prison in 2017 and at Lusignan Prison in 2020. The survey found that the prisons’ occupancy rate is at 129 per cent and 36 per cent are persons on remand. The report on the survey noted that the prison population can be reduced by lessening the time spent in pre-trial detention and using imprisonment for only serious offences, noting that drug offences account for a notable proportion of offenders.