Not all inmates guilty of crimes that took them to prisons — Archbishop Okeke

The Catholic Archbishop of Onitsha Archdiocese and Metropolitan of Onitsha Ecclesiastical Province, Most Rev. Valerian Okeke has said that not all the inmates of Nigerian Correctional Centers committed the crimes that took them to prisons.

Okeke, who made this observation in his homily at Onitsha Medium Correctional Centre during his Christmas pastoral visit said: “I am aware that some of you did not commit any crime but because of circumstances you found yourselves here, some of you here have even overstayed your jail term still seating trial, while others are here because you don’t have persons to speak for you.”

He, however, urged the inmates to serve their jail terms diligently by “learning some trades so that when they come out, they will become useful to themselves and to the society, rather than taking to crime out of frustrations. This is why I built an ultramodern skill acquisition centre here and equipped it for you to learn any trade of your choice while here.

“If you are doing God’s will and seeking His face, no power can frustrate the plan of God in you. What remains is to struggle to do the will of God and if you do the will of God, nobody will kill you. You must survive the winter of the world, but you will do the will of God. Be a light in the world in whatever you are doing.”

In his remarks, the state Comptroller of Nigerian Correctional Service, Joseph Usifo, among others, said the archbishop, through the donation of the multi million naira skill acquisition centre for the inmates where they now learn computer skills, tailoring, barbing and other skills, has set a pace in the entire correctional centres in Nigeria as the inmates of Onitsha now have the opportunity to be properly rehabilitated while their stay lasts in the centre through the skills acquisition, educational facilities and conducive cell environment all made possible by the archbishop.