People who hold the view that nothing good can come out of prisoners may begin to think otherwise. At least, the performance of some inmates of the Ikoyi Prisons, Lagos in the last November/December, 2013 General Certificate of Examination (GCE) is enough indication that Nigeria Prisons, in a way, are also centres of reformation.

 Indeed, with no fewer than 102 inmates of the prisons participating in the examinations and 48 of them posting outstanding results, some stakeholders note that there is still hope for jailbirds in the country.

Findings show that while a few of the 48 prisoners scored distinction in their papers, others got at least five credits which is the minimum requirement for securing university admission in the country.

 For example, while Bamidele Oluwafemi, with examination number 5258888075, obtained three distinctions and five credits, including English and Mathematics, Bassey Ekpo, with registration number 528888094 got five distinctions and two credits.

One of the outstanding inmates, Mr. Edet Patrick, explains the drive behind his success story.

 He says, “Even though I am an inmate here, I still hope to go back to school. I still look forward to going to the university to study Computer Engineering. Besides teaching us to work hard, the authorities here established a special school where we prepare for external examinations.”

 Patrick, a 24-year-old indigene of Calabar, Cross River State, adds that he wants to put the past behind him, and develop himself. Hence, he studied hard and passed the WAEC exams in flying colours. He had five credits. Patrick, who is serving a five-year jail term for conspiracy in a robbery case, which began on March 5, 2010 and will terminate on November 9, 2015, notes that despite having one more year to spend in jail, he has a great destiny ahead of him.

 “Making such results while here has made me realize I can still make it in life. It has taught me, I should never give up. I have also got closer to God while in this place,” he says.

 The head teacher of the school, a Principal Inspector of Prisons, Mr. Ayodele Obarewo, explains how the inmates have been performing.

“It is a voluntary school, and there are two classes –the beginners’ class and the examination class. In the latter, we have 40 inmates already, and they are showing great interest and enthusiasm in the lessons,” he notes.

 The Deputy Controller of Prisons, Mr. Emmanuel Bamidele disclosed that the key objective of the “Rehabilitation, Restoration and Reintegration” (3Rs) programme of Nigeria prison is to provide education opportunities for the inmates so that they can be useful to themselves and the society whenever they regained freedom.

 “When they finally regained their freedom they can seek admission into any university of their choice, since they are awaiting trial” the deputy controller said.

 He explained that out of the 1,761 inmates in the prison, 186 are convicted while 1,575 are awaiting trial for upwards of between five and 13 years.