Akuse-Ghana, Dec. 21, – Female inmates and officers at the Akuse Local Prison have received an early Christmas food party from Regain Hope, a Christian charity organisation.
The charity organisation, which has been in service for ten years, served fufu and banku with a variety of soups as part of its Christmas denotation exercise and a return of gesture when the Regain Hope members visited the prison to interact and preach the word of God with some inmates.
The event not only catered to the physical aspect but also the spiritual aspect of inmates, as they also received books and a Christmas message to guide them in their faith and comfort them in the situation they found themselves in.
The Christmas message delivered by the Reverend Professor Ivy Drafor-Ameyah, Executive Director of Regain Hope, appealed to both inmates and officers to hear the voice of God, giving reference to scripture from the Holy Bible taken from Matthew 1:18-25.
“When Mary was found with a child, her husband Joseph, who was known to be somebody who was just and had the fear of God, wanted to put her away quietly, and so God spoke with him to accept Mary as his wife as the Child (Jesus Christ) was not by some fornication or adultery, and Joseph heard the voice of God and obeyed,” she explained.
Rev. Prof. Drafor-Amenyah stressed further that sometimes people would want to go in a particular direction, but it may not be right, and so people need to hear the voice of God, especially in this period of Christmas, which in essence is to hear the voice of God, to listen, and to modify the cause of their actions.
She noted that having a peaceful mind and heart was a better life for every individual; therefore, prison is a state of mind and not the structural prison where they were because many are walking freely and yet separated from the love of God, and anybody who doesn’t know God is in prison and needs to be restored.
She commended the management of the Akuse Prison for their unique work in supporting the help that comes from the government so that they would be able to feed the people well and take good care of them, stressing that it was touching to see because the inmates were learning all manner of skills.
All seventy-one officers at the female prison and others from the male prison also shared in the meal, all in support of and appreciating the work they did.
Mr. Ernest Flecture, a member of the Advisory Board of Regain Hope, revealed that the annual Fufu-Party festival resonates with the teachings of Rev. Prof. Drafor-Amenyah and gives a feeling of satisfaction and fulfilment seeing the inmates dancing and having a good time.
Mr. Flecture noted that it was a big relief to see that the little they were doing was having a bigger impact on people than they envisioned it to, adding that prison is not a place anyone can feel comfortable being; therefore, he doesn’t want to assume that whatever way they are living, it is comfortable for them.
He said he has made a commitment to support the programme every year, and having experienced it for the first time, he is more interested in expanding and supporting it at all times.
Other members of the advisory board, Mr. Richmond Efodzo and Nana Asi Aryin, expressed their delight with the encounter and believed that although it was heartbreaking to see young people in prison, the message passed on to them was going to transform their lives when they regained their freedom.
They encourage the public, especially the youth, to listen to the word of God and follow through so that none of them find themselves in a situation that will deny them their freedom and pause their lives.
Some of the officers who spoke off record expressed their appreciation, as the party was the first of its kind at the Akuse Local Prison.
