Staff Reporter
THE head of operations of the Namibian Correctional Service (NCS), Deputy Commissioner General Sam Tshaalulange, who recently handed over repaired chairs and desks to the Grootfontein-based Kalenga Primary School, said that such repairs were neither a one-off exercise nor limited to Grootfontein.
“The repair of chairs and desks program is not only at Grootfontein Correctional Facility but also at several other correctional facilities,” he said.
He said that the purpose of the program is to assist schools while engaging inmates in constructive activities where they will not only learn skills they will need after release but also gain chairs and desks for their own educational and vocational classes. He is requesting schools all over the country to approach correctional facilities in their vicinity to repair chairs and desks.
Tshaalulange said that the NCS has industrial workshops at seven of its correctional facilities engaging in numerous trades such as bricklaying and plastering, carpentry and joinery, welding and metal fabrication, upholstery, auto mechanics, panel beating and spray painting, and many others.
“This is all meant to prepare inmates for their reintegration back into society,” he said, “increasing or enhancing their employability.” He thanked the Kalenga Primary School and its “fine teachers” and “wonderful learners” not only for choosing to work with the NCS but also for organizing an event that accorded the NCS an opportunity to showcase its abilities and emphasize its support to the community.
The NCS has a mandate to provide safe, secure, and humane custody to convicted offenders, and to rehabilitate and reintegrate them into the community.
