No meat for Chikurubi inmates for three years

PRISONERS at Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison have gone for three years without testing meat, a senior prison official revealed on Monday.

Inmates only had meat for the first time last week on Friday.

That is said to be the main reason for an attempted jailbreak in March this year.

Briefing the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Defence, Home Affairs and Security after touring the prison complex, Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services Mashonaland officer-in-charge, Assistant Commissioner George Denya and Chief Superintend Gilbert Marange, said prior to the March riots, prison guards had foiled another riot in February.

Said Chief Supt Marange: "For the past three years, the prisoners did not manage to eat any meat. What is required is to provide meat at least three times a week.

"The first meat that the prisoners ate was last Friday (June 20) when the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority provided us with 250kg of meat."

"On 13 February 2015 prisoners protested over food shortages. I came during the night and addressed them. Indications were there was concern that if the situation did not improve, something worse was going to happen," he said.

"I would not say l managed to recognise the ring leader, it was a collective effort and from the look of things, the motive was that they now wanted to escape."