The Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS) on Friday said 37 of its inmates were admitted and matriculated into the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN).
A statement by the Public Relations Officer of NCoS, Mr Francis Enobore on Friday in Abuja, said this was the second matriculation ceremony at the Custodial Centre, under the auspices of NOUN.
It stated that the inmates were admitted to study various courses as Business Administration, Political Science, Criminology and Security Studies, Journalism, Peace and Conflict Resolution, Accounting, Economics, Christian Religious Studies and Economics Education.
“The Vice Chancellor of NOUN, Prof. Olufemi Peters, represented by Dr Segun Adenuga, the Director of Ogun Study centre, took the enrollee through the orientation programme.
“The programme exposed their minds to what is expected of them as students of National Open University of Nigeria,” he said.
The statement quoted the Controller of Corrections, Ogun Command, Mojeed Olaniran, as congratulating the inmates and implored them to make good use of the opportunity.
He urged them to bear in mind that aside from security, the cardinal objectives of correction were reformation, rehabilitation and reintegration.
The controller re-emphasised that NCoS encouraged the inmates to upgrade themselves in various aspects of skill acquisition that would benefit their lives and society at large.
He admonished them to make good use of this second chance to remediate their wrong past and appreciated the good gesture of NOUN’s authority for providing free education to the inmates.
Responding, Peters affirmed that the University was poised to bring education to the doorstep of all and sundry, which included those in the correctional centres.
Peters further reassured the matriculating students that the authority was prepared to give them scholarship up to PhD level.
He advised them to make maximum use of their study materials and not to be derailed by their present conditions, urging them to rather use the opportunity to gain academic laurels.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) gathered that the second matriculation of inmates of the custodial centre into NOUN was also witnessed by the Director of Mass Literary, Ogun State, Alhaji Mikail Lawal.
The ceremony has brought the number of inmates of Ibara custodial centre undertaking various degree programmes at the NOUN to 87, including two Masters Degree Students.
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(NAN)
