In recent years, the phenomenon of prisoners in South African prisons using smuggled mobile phones to plan crimes has become increasingly rampant, triggering strong concerns from all walks of life about prison security management. The Congress of the People (COPE) recently called on the correctional department to take immediate action to urgently install cell phone jammers in major prisons across the country to effectively curb prisoners' illegal activities. This move is not only to improve security in prisons, but also to prevent criminal networks from using prisons as command centers, thereby threatening social security. signal jammer
The direct trigger for this call was a prison scandal that was recently exposed. Nigerian TV evangelist Timothy Omotoso, who was sentenced for rape, was found to have used his mobile phone to preach to his followers through video conferencing. GPS jammer It is reported that the pastor spoke to church members across the country through his mobile phone without hindrance in his single cell in St. Albans Prison in Port Elizabeth. Wifi jammerThis incident exposed serious loopholes in the management of mobile phones in the South African prison system.drone jammer
Although the correctional services department has launched an investigation into allegations of special treatment for Omotoso, the incident has raised public doubts about prison management. Many people believe that if timely measures are not taken, similar illegal activities will intensify, further weakening the deterrent effect of prisons.
It is not only a problem in individual prisons, but the prevalence of mobile phones in major prisons in South Africa has become an open secret. Recently, the correctional services department conducted a surprise search of the Johannesburg Central Prison and found multiple mobile phones and other contraband, including dangerous weapons and drugs, in several cells. This situation once again highlights the chaos in the internal management of South African prisons.
Dennis Bloem, national spokesperson for COPE, pointed out that possessing mobile phones in prisons has become a "profitable" business. Prisoners can easily obtain and use mobile phones to contact the outside world by bribing prison guards. "The large number of mobile phones found in our prisons is just the tip of the iceberg. Smuggled mobile phones are found in almost all prisons," said Blom. He stressed that the presence of mobile phones allows criminal gangs and drug traffickers to continue their illegal activities in prisons and even direct criminal acts outside.
At the strong request of COPE, Blom called on Michael Masutha, the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services of South Africa, to hold an urgent meeting to discuss the feasibility of installing mobile phone signal jammers in prisons. He questioned: "We don't understand why the correctional department has been slow to install such technology. In fact, these jammers can completely block prisoners from using mobile phones for illegal communications."
