The Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, has expressed concern over what he describes as growing abuse of remand procedures by both the police and the courts.
Speaking in Parliament during deliberations on the Community Service Bill, 2026, the minister said remand procedures had become excessive, with many suspects being detained unnecessarily or subjected to bail terms they could not meet.
“We should make remand very restrictive, because currently it is massively abused with the least provocation. You go to the police, they remand people anyhow, sometimes they give terrible bail conditions which people are not able to meet,” he stated.
Mr. Muntaka disclosed that his ministry was working closely with the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney-General on constitutional amendments aimed at tightening the use of remand in the criminal justice system.
According to him, the reforms, together with the proposed Community Service Bill and pending parole regulations, would significantly help decongest the country’s overcrowded prisons.
The Interior Minister painted a grim picture of conditions within the prisons, revealing that prison overcrowding currently stands at about 37 percent, with inmate numbers exceeding 13,000 nationwide.
He said the financial burden of maintaining prisoners had become enormous, with feeding alone costing the state about GH¢10 million every quarter, translating into roughly GH¢40 million annually.
Mr. Muntaka noted that although the government had increased the feeding allocation for inmates from GH¢1.80 to GH¢5 daily, the amount remained inadequate.
“Even the GH¢5 is woefully inadequate to feed an adult for three meals a day,” he said, comparing it to school feeding allocations for children.
The minister further highlighted the severe congestion in major prisons across the country, citing facilities originally built for hundreds of inmates but now housing several times their intended capacity.
The Minister for the Interior, Mohammed-Mubarak Muntaka, has expressed concern over what he described as the widespread abuse of remand and harsh bail conditions in the country’s justice system, revealing that the government is pursuing constitutional reforms to curb unnecessary detention and reduce overcrowding in prisons.
Speaking in Parliament during deliberations on the Community Service Bill, 2026, the minister said remand procedures had become excessive, with many suspects being detained unnecessarily or subjected to bail terms they could not meet.
“We should make remand very restrictive, because currently it is massively abused with the least provocation. You go to the police, they remand people anyhow, sometimes they give terrible bail conditions which people are not able to meet,” he stated.
Mr. Muntaka disclosed that his ministry was working closely with the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney-General on constitutional amendments aimed at tightening the use of remand in the criminal justice system.
According to him, the reforms, together with the proposed Community Service Bill and pending parole regulations, would significantly help decongest the country’s overcrowded prisons.
The Interior Minister painted a grim picture of conditions within the prisons, revealing that prison overcrowding currently stands at about 37 percent, with inmate numbers exceeding 13,000 nationwide.
He said the financial burden of maintaining prisoners had become enormous, with feeding alone costing the state about GH¢10 million every quarter, translating into roughly GH¢40 million annually.
Mr. Muntaka noted that although the government had increased the feeding allocation for inmates from GH¢1.80 to GH¢5 daily, the amount remained inadequate.
“Even the GH¢5 is woefully inadequate to feed an adult for three meals a day,” he said, comparing it to school feeding allocations for children.
The minister further highlighted the severe congestion in major prisons across the country, citing facilities originally built for hundreds of inmates but now housing several times their intended capacity.
He indicated that the Community Service Bill seeks to introduce non-custodial sentencing for persons convicted of minor offences, particularly those sentenced to three years or less.
Under the proposed law, eligible offenders could undertake community service instead of serving custodial sentences, thereby reducing pressure on prison facilities while promoting rehabilitation and reintegration into society.