Zainab Abioye
The Nigerian Correctional Service, Ogun State Command, has recorded a major milestone in its inmates’ rehabilitation programme as 32 inmates of the Ibara Custodial Centre, Abeokuta, sat for the Basic Education Certificate Examination for the first time.
The command also urged Nigerians to stop stigmatising ex-inmates, warning that rejection by society could undermine rehabilitation efforts and increase the risk of reoffending.
The BECE, held on Wednesday, involved 32 inmates, including 11 female candidates. Simultaneously, 42 other inmates wrote diploma, bachelor’s and master’s degree examinations in theology.
Speaking during the exercise, the Social Welfare Officer of the Ogun State Command, Superintendent Awesu AbdulHakeem, described the examination as a landmark achievement in the history of the command.
He explained that although the Ogun State Government approved custodial centres as examination centres about three years ago, officials spent two years preparing inmates before presenting the first batch for the BECE.
According to him, the command has been presenting inmates for the Senior Secondary Certificate Examination since 2017 while also enrolling them in programmes of the National Open University of Nigeria, vocational training and other educational initiatives.
AbdulHakeem said education remained one of the most effective tools for reforming inmates and preparing them for successful reintegration into society.
“We don’t stop at their release. We have aftercare services where we monitor many of them after leaving the custodial centre. Some of those granted amnesty even returned from outside to complete this examination,” he said.
One of the inmates sitting for a Bachelor of Arts in Theology examination, who has been in custody since 2019, said the educational programme had transformed his life.
He said he had abandoned smoking, alcohol and other negative habits, expressing confidence that he would become a responsible citizen after his release.
“What I failed to learn outside, I have learnt here. I have been rehabilitated through this education. I believe I am a changed person and I won’t disappoint the government when I return to society,” he said.
The Ogun State Controller of Corrections, Abioye Kamorudeen Adeshina, said the examinations demonstrated that correctional centres were fulfilling their constitutional mandate of reforming offenders rather than merely detaining them.
He appealed to the Ogun State Government, corporate organisations and public-spirited individuals to support the command with learning facilities, computers, operational vehicles and improved water supply.
Adeshina disclosed that the Ibara Custodial Centre currently houses 1,393 inmates, while correctional facilities across Ogun State have over 4,000 inmates despite limited capacity.
He identified overcrowding as a major challenge but commended the state government for granting amnesty to 81 inmates on June 12, 2026, describing the gesture as a significant step towards decongesting custodial centres.
Also speaking, the Director of Studies at the West Africa College for Christian Mission, Dr Philip Oluwafemi, said the theology students had shown remarkable dedication throughout their academic programmes.
He disclosed that the institution would hold its convocation on August 7 for graduating inmates, noting that education continued to transform lives within correctional facilities.
The Public Relations Officer of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Ogun State Command, Chief Superintendent of Corrections Owolola Odukoya Olayinka, called on Nigerians to embrace rehabilitated ex-inmates instead of subjecting them to discrimination.
According to him, former inmates who have acquired education and vocational skills deserve a second chance, warning that persistent stigmatisation could frustrate their reintegration and expose them to criminal relapse.
“Stigmatisation is not an option. Acceptability is what we are begging for. When people have gone through rehabilitation and the world still tells them they are nobody, it is like sending them back to where they came from,” he said.
Olayinka added that several former inmates had become productive members of society through educational opportunities provided in correctional centres, citing the example of a former inmate who now works as a lecturer after studying at the West Africa College for Christian Mission, an affiliate of Freedom University in the United States.
He added that the command’s aftercare programme also monitors released inmates and tracks the use of empowerment tools provided to them to help them build sustainable livelihoods.
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