Scarcity of funds has stopped about 40 inmates of Medium Security Custodial Centre, Umuahia from registering for either the West African School Certificate Examination or the National Examination Council this year.
Deputy controller of the centre, Orjiakor Mabia, stated this when the Nigerian partner of Global Compassion Coalition, Compassion Connectors Nigeria, paid the inmates a Christmas visit in Umuahia.
Mabia, who was enumerating the centre’s challenges, said others were lack of sleeping mats, drugs at the clinic, logistics, dresses for awaiting trial and judgement inmates, library books and instructional materials.
“Besides being over populated, our information communication technology and the National Open University of Nigeria centres are ill-equipped,” the controller said.
He, therefore, solicited the partnership of the coalition in addressing the challenges, and lauded the national coordinator of the connectors, Uwalaka Uchechukwu and his team for the visit.
Speaking earlier, Uwalaka said they came to celebrate the occasion “as people are doing out there with the inmates, and to show them love and sense of belonging.”
“We’ve much to do together with the centre to better the lot of the inmates. Overtime, we’ve also been having a cordial relationship with the centre which we want to sustain,” he noted.
Uwalaka explained that he came along with Pastor Ugochukwu Uchegbu of the Winners’ Chapel, Umuahia, and the executive director of Project Dorcas Foundation, Uche Ama-Ohaka.
