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On Wednesday, May 1, 2019, which is a statutory holiday for workers, GNPC Foundation celebrated the day in style with the theme ‘Health and Safety’. The Foundation hired the services of some experts to fumigate the Sekondi Central Prison of the Western Region which has not seen such an exercise at their outfit for more than a year.

The Sekondi Central Prison which was established in 1902 has an authorized capacity of Two Hundred and Fifty (250) in-mates but now accommodates Seven Hundred and Forty-Three (743) in-mates. As a result, there is a high incidence of communicable diseases, poor sewage system, prevalence of insects, pests and fungi.

The Prison Wardens have moved from the traditional way of viewing punishment as a retributive practice where culprits sufferthe same way as their victims suffered or see them as a deterrence theory to discourage likeminded people from committing such crimes but rather recognize punishments as reformative and restorative justice where the culprit is put back to his original position by equipping him with professional skills such as masonry, carpentry, dressmaking, modern methods farming, kente weaving, non-formal education where they write NVTI Examination at the end of their training in order for them to become useful members of the society in future.

Deputy Director of Prisons for the region, Commander Mark Agbosu who welcomed the GNPC Foundation team to their premises, briefed us on the challenges they face and their desired assistance, took us round to some vintage points of the prison including where the in-mates are being trained to acquire professional skills. Mr. Agbosu thanked GNPC Foundation for responding positively to their request within the shortest time and called for future collaborations.

On his part the Executive Director for GNPC Foundation, Dr Dominic Kwesi Eduah who also shares the view of the prison officers on the modern theorem of punishment promised that theFoundationwilldo whatever possible to improve the health and safety of the in-mates. He noted that the Foundation is in advance talks with the leadership of the prisons to form a partnership that the in-mates will be involved to prepare a vast farm land to cultivate GNPC local rice.

The Western Regional Minister who doubles as the Chairman of the Regional Prisons Council, Hon Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah was thankful and excited with GNPC Foundation’s initiative and urged other corporate bodies to do same.