On Saturday 8^th October, our Bachelor of Commerce Principle of Ethics 3^rd year class had an exciting experience as they visited Naivasha Maximum Security Prison, in order to make a difference in the lives of others as we also bonded as a class.

 

We arrived at the prison at around 11am, the prison department officers were ready to receive us. We had to confirm our visit by giving out our details, after which one of the officials gave a brief talk on the prison and the rules to follow during the visit. We were frisked to make sure that none of us carried any contraband to the prison apart from what we had bought to donate; stationeries, toiletries and chalks.

 

After the whole of the security check, we finally got into the prison compound and the vicinity suddenly changed, most of us started feeling a bit different with the fact that we were inside a place with very high walls and tight security. We couldn’t imagine how the prisoners feel about this.

 

We visited the prison’s kitchen for a start, where some prisoners were cooking and serving. After this we visited the prison’s school. This was the most interesting part of the visit, as we learnt that the prison has schools, right from nursery to university, and roughly 1500 prisoners are enrolled in the schools. They have their own school heads and teachers within themselves. What we realized is that most of them have a passion for learning.

 

We finally got into their library where we had quite a long session with a few of the prisoners. I bet everyone in the group was very happy about this session, as much as it was emotional. We had a few talks with the principal of the school and a few of the teachers who actually put on a slightly different uniform from the rest. They all shared their stories on how they got themselves in prison and all their stories were sad, some were surprising, but we got to learn a lot from their mistakes.

 

After that session, we ended our visit with the prisoners thanking us for the support the university has accorded them through the years. We left the prisons challenged and motivated to do right and our best as students and citizens of this country.

 

 

Article written by Faith Nyarienya (Class Representative)