{"id":11539,"date":"2017-03-15T19:34:49","date_gmt":"2017-03-15T18:34:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nationalwire.com.ng\/?p=11539"},"modified":"2017-03-15T19:34:49","modified_gmt":"2017-03-15T18:34:49","slug":"about-80-of-nigerian-prison-inmates-are-talented-energetic-youths","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nationalwire.com.ng\/sub\/about-80-of-nigerian-prison-inmates-are-talented-energetic-youths\/","title":{"rendered":"About 80% of Nigerian Prison Inmates are Talented, Energetic Youths\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dayo Emmanuel<\/p>\n

A non for profit organisation, the Prisoners Reformation and Rehabilitation Centre has held a youth leadership seminar in Lagos.<\/p>\n

The event which held at the weekend in Lagos featured several lectures and performances by artistes.<\/p>\n

According to the convener, Chima Chinedu, the event was staged using entertainment to attract youths out of criminal behaviours.<\/p>\n

Chinedu, a graduate of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, who had helped established a recording studio at the Ikoyi Prisons for inmates interested in music, told journalists at the event what created in him the passion for ensuring empowerment programs for prison inmates.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe journey started when I went to visit a friend in prison. A mother came to visit her son who was in the condemned cell and before her arrival, the visiting period was over. She cried and cried because she may not see him again before execution,\u201d he narrated, continuing that, \u201cThis experience touched me greatly and I started planning ways to reach out to the youths.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have opened computer centres in prisons to teach skills the inmates could leverage on when released. But must we wait for people to go to prison before we reach out to them? Almost 80% of people in prisons in Nigeria are youths,\u201d he laments.<\/p>\n

In her own lecture, Deputy Comptroller of Prisons, Mrs. Leticia Isioma Onwuli states the need for young people to know about the prisons.<\/p>\n

According to her \u201cWe only encourage people from 18 and above to visit the prison. It is not for people in primary and secondary schools, but we can only be at seminars to enlighten people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Onwuli however listed three categories of people in the prisons. \u201cThere are three classes of inmates I have recognised in the prisons. The ones from the streets; these ones want to go to prisons, they are ready to misbehave,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Second on her list are those from stable homes. \u201cThere are the ones from homes, they are neither here nor there. They are easily drawn by those in the streets who are already down.\u201d<\/p>\n

The prison official continued that \u201cThe third category are those who make little mistakes and find themselves in the prisons,\u201d enjoining the youths to keep themselves busy with legitimate activities that can prevent them from prison.<\/p>

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She however enjoined the society to accept and integrate ex-convicts into the society. \u201cThere was a comedian in the prison who later performed at the Stand Up Nigeria show. She left the prison and today she has relocated to Ghana because according to her, she was not given chance in Nigeria.\u201d<\/p>\n

Encouraging youths at the event, a musician, Vocal slender told the participants the importance of education and imagination. A former worker at the Ojota Lagos dump site who through self-help became a role model for several youths said, \u201cI was a secondary school drop-out. I lived at the Ojota dump for ten years but I didn\u2019t end my life there,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The musician narrated how he found interest in reading good books thrown away and brought to the dump site. \u201cI first read the book Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe at the dump site. I am a JSS 3 drop out but I developed myself through reading books people threw away,\u201d he narrated.<\/p>\n

The entertainer who rose from the dump site to fame today has traveled wide in Europe. \u201cOther books I read include My Command, Because I am Involved. I read books on Nelson Mandela, I read the Audacity of Hope and many other books that developed me. Life is a process,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n

In his own presentation, CEO of Question Mark Label, Kelvin Lucciano said entertainment is a tool to draw the youths away from vices. According to him, \u201cA lot of artistes have been given opportunities by God, record labels and individuals who have not maximized their opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that, \u201cThe best story is from nothing to something. Daddy Showkey could have turned out an armed robber but he found music, he was given opportunity by God and by some people and he maximized it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lucciano however advised the Nigerian \u201cIf government at the Local Government levels can build recording studios in each Local Government Area, build vocational centres for people to get engaged productively, they won\u2019t keep rushing to Lagos to seek opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his own remark, the former psychologist at the Ikoyi Prisons, Mr. Ogbonna addressed participating youths the time is now to develop their talents for better future. Ogbonna, now operating from the Kirikiri Prisons had established the 3R Club at the Ikoyi Prisons where several talents were discovered and trained.<\/p>\n

\u201cInmates are discovered and grouped in departments. They are into script writing, studio management. We have entertainment department, we did talent hunt. Anybody can partner with us to do entertainment. There are lots of talents behind the wall.<\/p>\n

Other facilitators at the event included Amaka Orakwe, Nkem Offonabo among others.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dayo Emmanuel A non for profit organisation, the Prisoners Reformation and Rehabilitation Centre has held a youth leadership seminar in Lagos. The event which held at the weekend in Lagos featured several lectures and performances by artistes. According to the convener, Chima Chinedu, the event was staged using entertainment to attract youths out of criminal …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":11540,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[65,17],"tags":[1637],"coauthors":[2392,2393],"class_list":["post-11539","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-feature","category-news","tag-prison"],"yoast_head":"\nAbout 80% of Nigerian Prison Inmates are Talented, Energetic Youths\u2019 - National Wire<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nationalwire.com.ng\/sub\/about-80-of-nigerian-prison-inmates-are-talented-energetic-youths\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"About 80% of Nigerian Prison Inmates are Talented, Energetic Youths\u2019 - National Wire\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Dayo Emmanuel A non for profit organisation, the Prisoners Reformation and Rehabilitation Centre has held a youth leadership seminar in Lagos. 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