Inmates at Ntcheu prison are living under horrific conditions due to acute shortage of water at the prison.

According to Ntcheu Prison Chaplain, Reverend Stanley Chimesha, the prison has stayed without water for two weeks, a situation which has left over three hundred inmates going without food on daily basis.

Reverend Chimesha said he has held talks with authorities at the prison on several occasions to rectify the problem but to no avail.

“They are saying that the problem has been there for many years but it becomes worse during the dry season like now because there is no where they can get water,” he said.

He warned that if remain unchanged, the situation may lead to increased cases of skin and water bone diseases among inmates due to poor hygiene.

“All the boreholes are dry, the taps are dry.  385 inmates need water to bath, to drink and for cooking and they cannot live without it,” Chimesha said.

He said the situation is beyond prison authorities and it needs the intervention of government.  

Malawi Prisons Service Public Relations Officer Smart Maliro, could not be reached for comment despite several attempts.