Kano State Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has granted freedom to 123 prison inmates across the state.
Ganduje, who witnessed the release of the inmates from Goron Dutse Prison on Thursday, said the gesture was in the spirit of Eid-el Fitr.
The governor said the beneficiaries of the gesture were selected based on the gravity of offence and sign of reformation while in prison.
Accordiing to him, the decision to visit the prison was to show the inmates that the state government was aware of their existence and that they were also regarded as citizens of the state.
He said that the gesture was to complement Federal Government’s efforts to further reduce congestion in the nation’s prisons.
Ganduje advised the ex-inmates to change their attitudes to life and pray for peace and stability in Nigeria.
The governor also gave each of the freed inmates N5,000 as transport fare to their destination.
Earlier, Suleiman Suleiman,the Comptroller of Prisons in Kano,had thanked the governor for freeing thousands of inmates since his coming into office.
Suleiman advised the freed inmates to stay off crimes to avoid going back to prison.
Ganduje also visited remand homes and Kano children’s home in the metropolis as part of the Eid celebration.
