A Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Prisoners Rehabilitation and Welfare Action (PRAWA), has empowered no fewer than eight non-custodial inmates with livelihood support and starter packs to set up or grow their businesses.
The eight non-custodial inmates, four of whom had completed their community service sentences and four who were still serving theirs for various offences, were selected for the initiative.
Donating the starter packs to the beneficiaries at the Nigerian Correctional Service Command in Kano, the President of PRAWA, Prof. Uju Agomoh, said the persons were selected because they served with diligence.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the empowerment programme was supported by International IDEA and the European Union.
Agomoh said the initiative was designed to help the non-custodial inmates establish non-custodial enterprising units in their communities to train others and add value to their communities.
“The history that is being made today is that for the first time in the history of Nigeria, support towards rehabilitation and reintegration is focusing on those who have served their sentences in the community.
“What PRAWA is saying is that when anyone who has committed an offence of any kind has served their sentence, their punishment for that offence, we should be concerned about why that person committed that offence in the first instance.
“So it is not enough to say you have finished serving your sentence of community service, or probation, or whatever, without thinking about how we can ensure that there will be no any need for you to come back again.
“Many people who commit offences do so due to various factors, what we call risk factors. They vary, but one of them is lack of adequate livelihood and gainful employment,” she said.
According to her, PRAWA, the Correctional Service, and other development partners have collaborated to provide support for the beneficiaries to be reintegrated into the society.
“Now that you have finished your sentence and be able to stand on your own, economically independent, not only that, but also be able to add value to the community.
“We are here to support you all the way, because we want the society to be safe, we want our communities to be safe. We want you to be living free of crime, so, we want to make sure that that support mechanism is there for you,” she said.
Agomoh also called on the beneficiaries’ families, their neighbours, friends, the private sector, state-based organisations, and other stakeholders to join hands with PRAWA and Correctional Service to ensure that the rehabilitation and reintegration programme was holistic and sustainable.
“As you are presented with these items, there are three things we are looking for from you. We want a situation where we should be proud to display what came out of this to attract contracts.
“Secondly, the idea behind this is economic sustainability. Thirdly, establish an enterprising unit for the Nigerian Correctional Service, Non-Custodial Directorate, and be there to support others,” Agomoh said.
The Controller-General of Corrections, CGC Sylvester Ndidi-Nwakuche, warned the beneficiaries against selling the items given to them, saying the service would closely monitor the items to ensure proper utilisation.
Ndidi-Nwakuche, who was represented by the Deputy Controller-General in charge of the Non-Custodial Directorate, Ibrahim Idris, described community service as the new face of corrections and an alternative to decongest custodial centres.
He called on personnel and other stakeholders to promote the idea of community service to judges and courts so that they sentence more people who were not supposed to go to custodial centres to community service, to save cost and decongest custodial facilities.
The controller-general commended the organisers, PRAWA and other development partners, for their continued collaboration in strengthening non-custodial measures.
In his remarks, the Controller of Corrections, Kano State Command, CC Ahmed Yusuf-Lakpene, thanked PRAWA for selecting Kano as a beneficiary and commended the Non-Custodial Unit for its efforts in ensuring the successful implementation of the programme.
NAN reports that items distributed include a full 3-drawer Butterfly Sewing Machine, Turo Carpentry Tool Box, a carton of broilers / 2 bags of broiler feeds, a handbead fixing machine, and a trailer installation tool box.
(NAN)
