Former Chief Justice, Cllr. Gloria Musu-Scott, a convicted felon, has lamented the deplorable condition faced by prisoners, mainly women and girls at the Monrovia Central Prison.
Speaking from her prison compound on Friday, June 14, 2024 when the Women Situation Room (WSR) distributed 25 bags of rice to inmates in memory of former President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s son Charles Sirleaf, Cllr. Scott craved the Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation (LWSC) to supply the prison facility with water.
She pointed out that water is one of the most pressing needs of the already overcrowded prison.
She is pleading to the Government of Liberia and partners to do an assessment on how water can be brought in the prison compound; adding “It is difficult to get water from the wells.”
“As an inmate, I see what the girls go through to get water. They have to come out in the rain sometimes to access water. We need a lasting solution to water. Water is a serious problem in here,” Cllr Scott stated.
For his part, Prison Superintendent, Varney Lake called on national government and international partners to assist the prison management with the provision water, food and other needs.
Lake added that the water situation at the central prison is a concern that needs to be addressed with urgency.
During the dry season, he said all the wells run dried due to the environment, but are able to access some water during the raining season which is not sufficient and healthy enough to serve the water needs of inmates.
Varney said the prison facility already has water pipes erected but there is no water running in the facility.
He stressed that once the rain falls, the sand runs in the wells, making it difficult to access water. He wants LWSC to connect water to the facility.
If water is brought to the prison facility, Lake observed will bring great relief to the prisoners.
Meanwhile, Lake said the prison population has grown more than what the facility was built for which is 374 but now has 1500, four times more than its original capacity.
