Cross River State Command of Nigerian Prisons Service has said that an inmate of Afokang Prison in Calabar (name withheld) who was delivered of twins on April 17 has died.
A statement on Wednesday by the Command’s spokesperson, Effanga Etim, said the woman died on April 19 from complications after putting to bed via a Caesarean section.
The command debunked reports that the woman was delivered of her baby in prison. It, however, said she was attended to at the General Hospital in Calabar where she had been receiving ante-natal care.
It said that due to “complications arising from the caesarean section, she was referred to the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) for further management, where she died on 19th April, 2019.
“The Command wishes to state emphatically that for the past four (4) years, there has not been any delivery in the Calabar prison infirmary.
“Albeit, the infirmary is well equipped to handle health emergencies that may arise with nine (9) medical experts comprising of a medical doctor, registered nurses/midwives and community health workers as well as back-up medical personnel stationed in the State Prison Headquarters, any emergency beyond the infirmary is referred to government hospitals outside the prison.
“The Nigerian Prisons Service, Cross River state command, is pained over the loss of the said inmate after a combined effort by the prison authority, the Cross River state government and medical personnel in the General Hospital, Calabar. I assure the public that the health and welfare of prisoners.”
Etim said the babies are being looked after by the state government.
