The Prison Industrial Complex (the PIC) is a trend that has developed over recent decades in which the states and governments turns the managing of some of its prisons over to private corporations. These corporations then run the prisons for profit. The leadership of these corporations is also involved in a great deal of political lobbying, to influence the passing of legislation that favors conditions for the profitability of these private prisons. This has affected the prison environment and the entire criminal justice system in a number of ways. To be effective, a prison or correctional facility should be designed to rehabilitate its prisoners and return them to society as useful contributors. A criminal justice system that is in alignment with this goal, will work toward reducing the number of people who become incarcerated. It will find ways of handing out justice that enables the offending parties to continue being productive members of the community whenever possible. In this week’s edition of “The View Of The Nation”, Lerato Mbele is joined by Singabakho Nxumalo, Spokesperson for the Department of Correctional Services and Lesiba Thobakgale, Spokesperson for the South African Policing Union (SAPU), to talk about the economics of running prisons and the prisoner industrial complex in SA.