The Rotary Club of Abuja City says it plans to partner with the Nigeria Correctional Service towards reform of inmates, to make them better citizens.
Mr Guobadia Imafidon, President, Rotary Club of Abuja City District 9125, said this at the club’s fellowship to mark its peace and conflict resolution month.
Imafidon said that the club would also organise sports competitions as well as help to secure freedom for some of the inmates.
According to Imafidon, Rotary International usually designate each month for certain humanitarian activities and has chosen February to promote peace and conflict resolution.
“So we decided to invite a speaker from the Correctional Service to talk to us and let us know the diverse ways we can sustain peace and bring peace to conflict communities.
“Sports was identified as a way of bringing peace to communities, as well as influence people to have a participatory spirit.
“This lecture by a staff of correctional service is the beginning, now we will look for ways to visit the correctional service and see how we can facilitate the freedom of some inmates.
“After securing their freedom, we will talk to them about peace and how they will be able to bring influence to the community,’’ he said.
Imafidon said that the club would do its best to help the inmates, and urged other Nigerians to also do the little they could to bring succour to them.
Mr Yakubu Sylvanus, the Guest Speaker, presented a paper titled: “The Role of Sports in Promoting and Sustaining Peace in Nigeria Correctional Centres and in Our Local Communities” .
Sylvanus, who works with the Nigeria Correctional Service, said that the service was willing to partner with the rotary club to promote sporting activities in various correctional centres.
“They can do more by giving us facilities, that will be good, all that matters to us about the inmates is to keep them physically fit and healthy and you know that is what sports does.
“We try as much as we can to put the inmates on their toes by ensuring that they are healthy,’’ he said.
Sylvanus also called on government, community leaders and wealthy Nigerians to provide sports facilities in their localities, so as to engage the youths away from crime and criminalities.
“For example, if you want to organise a football tournament here today, you will find youths will come around.
“So as you engage them in sports not just football, you will discover that a lot of them will go away from the life of crime,’’ he said.
Mr James Ugbeda, the Secretary of District 9125, said that February marked the month that Rotary came into being in 1905, as such decided to use the month to preach peace.
Ugbeda said that the partnership with the correctional service revolved around peace building in the society.
“The collaboration has started already, sports is a unifying factor, so we are going to support them by giving some basic sports equipment towards encouraging sports and at the tail end, encourage peace,’’ he said.
Ugbeda urged government to fund sports, because of its importance in peace building.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Rotary club presented an award to the Comptroller-General, Nigeria Correctional Service, Haliru Nababa, in recognition of his contributions to sports development in Nigeria.
Source: News Agency of Nigeria