Accra (Greater Accra), 29th April ?99-

The Ghanaian taxpayer since the beginning of this month, is paying 1,800 cedis a day to feed one prisoner, up from 1,500 cedis previously Professor Patrick Twumasi, Chairman of the Prisons Council, who was speaking at the inauguration of the Greater Accra Regional Prisons Committee, said there are about 8,000 prisoners in the country with 20 per cent of them being on remand.

He told members of the committee to find viable ways of making prisoners productive in order to lower the cost of their maintenance, especially in feeding and rehabilitation of their facilities.

Prof. Twumasi said the government is concerned with the improvement of the existing conditions of prisons, adding that the Prison Council, which was inaugurated in March 1998, has produced a welfare report with the aim of finding ways to improve the prisons.

"We need to find ways and means to decongest our prisons, to improve upon the sanitary conditions and to lower and eradicate health hazards."

He called on members to be dedicated and committed, saying that they need to be provided with logistics that would enable them to function properly.

Prof. Twumasi said society must not only be protected from the activities of criminals but also as far as practicable, such deviants should be helped to reform and become useful citizens.

Mr Amos Buertey, Deputy Greater Accra Regional Minister called for the institution of measures that would ensure proper rehabilitation of ex-convicts.

He said the present system hardens some of the convicts instead of reforming them after serving their prison term.

The 10-member committee is under the chairmanship of Mr Daniel Ohene Agyekum, Greater Accra Regional Minister.

GRi?/