Ikoyi Prison Wears a New Face
.Improves Inmates' Sanitary Condition
Ikoyi Prison is witnessing an unprecedented turnaround almost on a daily basis since the deployment of the Deputy Controller of Prison, DCP Tolu Ogunsakin, to the prison, on February 14, 2018, as its Officer-In-Charge.
The giant strides recorded in the prison is driven by strict adherence to the directive from the Controller General of Prisons, CGP Ja’afaru Ahmed, who charged officers upon deployment, to develop plans to ensure rapid improvement of their place of assignment.
Within few months of being in charge, Ogunsakin has seen to the renovation of the walls of the prison, installation of Close Circuit Television (CCTV) camera around the prison, and offering of intensive skills acquisition training to the prison’s inmates.
Last weekend, a block of seven rooms toilet facility built in partnership with the Prisons Ministry, an outreach arm of the House on the Rock Church, was inaugurated to improve the sanitary condition of the inmates at the prison.
During the inauguration of the facility, a novelty football match was played in which the Ikoyi Prison FC made up of the inmates, traded tackles with the House on the Rock FC, aimed at contributing to the physical well-being of the inmates, and giving them a sense of belonging in the society.
Speaking at the event, Ogunsakin said the grace of God coupled with great assistance from the Controller General of Prisons and the Lagos State Controller of Prison, were behind the successes recorded at the Ikoyi Prison.
“The issue is that when God is giving you the grace, all things come in a miraculous way. And kudos to the Controller General who mandated that all hands should be on deck; that as an officer-in-charge, you should make sure that things move where you are heading. Also the religious bodies, individuals and NGOs are trying,” Ogunsakin said.
“And kudos again to the House on the Rock for donating this toilet facility to add to the one we have and to improve the condition of the inmates here. Apart from this, the church has been contributing to the physical and spiritual welfare of the inmates in this prison,” he noted.
Ogunsakin also admonished the inmates to have faith in God, stressing that, with that, their freedom would come one day.
Also speaking, Director, Prison Ministry, House on the Rock Church, Pastor Joe Uleatol, said the project showed the desire of the church to improve the lives of the inmates, bearing in mind the challenges of being behind bars.
“So things like this, we believe, will go a long way in relieving the inconveniences and all that. We’ve done other few things like talent hunts, where we discover talents in here; we’ve done football matches where they played with us. And then, we have a medical team that comes here for administration of in-house medicals to take care of the inmates here, and also, our legal team that have taken care of several minor cases successfully which has led to the discharge of some inmates,” Uleatol said.
He encouraged the inmates not to lose hope, assuring them that God’s plan for them has not changed.