While some felt the report revealed everything they already knew, the Selwyn Ryan report is being debated by several concerned citizens who expressed various views. Some of the results from the findings done by a committee appointed by Cabinet, is causing quite a stir by the Prisons Authority. Some of the findings stated that gang lords from behind the prison walls are somehow able to have control of the Community based Environmental Protection and Enhancement Programme (CEPEP), as well as the Unemployment Relief Programme (URP). The report spoke about the ghost gangs that still exist within the URP, although some constituents are in total denial that this practise still exist.
Prison officers are also disturbed by the results of the report especially where it stated that Officers are responsible for taking contraband into the prison cells. Prison Commissioner Martin Martinez has vowed to deal with officers who by their action cause the service to be in disrepute. He admitted there have been officers who were caught with cigarettes, marijuana and cell-phones in prison, but does not agree that inmates were responsible for controlling CEPEP and URP behind bars.
