- The example of Vincent Obi of Lagos prisons command
Ordinarily, a prison sentence should not signal the foreclosure of hope or of the possibility of a redemptive future for those who find themselves facing the legal consequences of infractions of the law. In enlightened jurisdictions, the purpose of imprisonment transcends meting out punishment to the convict to also trying as much as possible to make a prison term a corrective period during which the inmate is given an opportunity to become a better person and a potentially more valuable member of society.
One way of achieving this is by encouraging convicts to improve their education and acquire advanced knowledge or specialised skills during their incarceration. This, of course, implies a prison system with the requisite physical facilities, psychological environment and ethical values to help nudge those compelled to pass through it towards a greater sense of responsibility and higher moral standards.
Despite the depressing and discouraging news that often emanate from Nigeria’s prisons, there is a growing trend of affording inmates the chance of sitting for external examinations and acquiring valuable certificates, which are refreshing glimmers of hope. It is noteworthy, for instance, that 367 prison inmates were among the 1.7 million candidates who sat for the Y2017 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UMTE), which has just taken place in 624 centres across the country. The Lagos Command of the Nigeria Prisons Service offers an instructive snapshot of the general picture. In this command, 28 inmates sat for the UMTE in 2015, 32 in 2016 and 60 this year.
Speaking on this trend in 2015, the Controller of Prisons, Lagos Command, Mr. Vincent Obi, gave some useful insight into why this heartwarming development is becoming part of our prison culture. In his words, “The education of these inmates is of top priority to us. Like I always tell them each time I go for routine checks in the prisons, their being in incarceration does not mean all hopes are lost. I usually remind them of the importance of education and the tremendous benefits that come with it, irrespective of the circumstance anyone might find himself or herself. Now, with the UTME around the corner, we have been preparing these people fully in all the subjects and they also improved on their level of literacy”.
The many patriotic prison officials like Obi deserve commendation for being a source of encouragement and motivation to the inmates in the drive for self-improvement, which has led to increased enrolment in the various prison facilities. Some of the prison personnel are reportedly drafted to serve as teachers in various subjects to the inmates alongside other volunteer teachers. The authorities of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) must also be lauded for taking cognizance of prison inmates in their plans.
It has also turned out that the existence of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) has been of benefit to many inmates. Again, according to Mr. Obi, some of the inmates who gained admission into NOUN have performed impressively. “Of note”, he says, “is one of the inmates who graduated in 2015 with first class, and is currently teaching other inmates in the prison facilities. Such persons, if they are on life sentence, we often make a case to their respective state governments and their prerogative of mercy officer will take it from there to recommend such inmates for pardon”.
We urge the acceleration of comprehensive prison reforms to address such challenges as intolerable overcrowding, insanitary conditions, poor hygiene, inadequate and poor quality food, water shortages and sundry human rights abuses among other ills that make it impossible for our prisons to truly serve as corrective and humanity-enhancing facilities.
