President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has asked society to avoid stigmatising prisoners and ex-convicts.
Despite efforts to reform inmates in prisons to integrate them into the community after serving their sentences, “society remains reluctant to accept ex-convicts back in its ranks,” he said.
The President said that officers of the Ghana Prison Ghana Prisons Service have a lot to do to ensure that inmates return well-reformed and rehabilitation and that society has a responsibility to welcome inmates and provide them with the support they need.
President Akufo-Addo appealed the graduation of the Senior Corps of the Ghana Prisons Service as he graduated 198 officers from accredited tertiary institutions.
Officer Cadet Corps 29 intake was held at the forecourt of the Ghana Prisons Service School in Accra.
At the school, 127 male officers and 71 female officers went through rigorous entry requirements and intensive training.
President Akufo-Addo in congratulating the new officers expressed hope that the Service has well equipped them to take on the responsibilities ahead.
He commended Service Commanders for working under pressure to produce well-trained officers to refine the workforce despite limited resources.
President Akufo-Addo said his administration has improved the human resources capacity of the service in recent years with the recruitment of over 3,000 recruits and the enlistment of several officer cadets.
The President expressed the Government’s commitment to developing the capacity of the Prison Service and thanked the Generals and staff of the service for making Ghana’s prisons one of the best managed in Africa.
He said the government would work to decongest the prisons and improve their conditions, and promised to improve the living conditions of Ghana Prisons Service staff.
The Overall Best Officer Cadet award went to Homey Mathew Amegbor, the Best Academic award went to Paul Achampong, and Philip Opoku Prempeh won the Commander’s award.
Sarah Ankamah-Yeboah was awarded the best in training and Collins Owusu Nyarko received the best in physical fitness exercise.
Some dignitaries who were present were the Minister of the Interior, Mr Ambrose Dery who doubles as the Head of security agencies and a Member of Parliament, Directors of Prison Service, past Director General of the service, and Members of the diplomatic corps, traditional rulers and the clergy.
Officers were trained in legal and policy foundation, penal, human rights and administrative law, public sector financial management, prisons and prisoner management, correction management and computation among others.
On June 18, 2022, Senior Chief Albert Henry Lutterodt, who died while rescuing flood victims on the Cape Coast Elmina Highway, was posthumously promoted to Assistant Superintendent of Prisons.