A leading activist movement, the Luchi Advocate Foundation, LAF, in collaboration with the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Command of the Nigerian Correctional Service on Wednesday empowered skilled ex-inmates of the FCT Correction Service with vocational tools, start-up materials as well as finance to support their reintegration into society and reduce the likelihood of returning to crime.
At the empowerment event held in Abuja on Wednesday, FCT Controller of Corrections, Christopher Peter Jen, described the beneficiaries as products of the service’s rehabilitation initiative, noting that they acquired various vocational skills while in custody and are now being equipped to establish sustainable means of livelihood.
While maintaining that the beneficiaries are ready to contribute meaningfully to society, the Controller said the correctional service remains committed to mentoring and monitoring released inmates to ensure they successfully utilise the skills acquired during incarceration.
Mr Christopher said, “Let me first of all thank my dear sister, the Founder and Chief Executive of Officer of Luchi Advocate Foundation, for what she has been doing in the lives of our inmates within the FCT Command.
“As you can see, these young people that will receive these items, I assure you, they are going to make good use of it very quickly. It may interest you to know that all my skilled ex-inmates have my number from Benue, Lagos, Ibadan, from Sokoto, from Kaduna, from Lokoja, all of them.
“I’m in contact with them, and the essence is for me to make sure that I actually do these things that my dear sister is doing today. I did not leave them when they leave the center, I make sure that we are always in contact with each other for the purpose of making sure that the skill they learn, they are going to replicate it outside there, and by so doing, you know, become an ambassador of the Nigerian Correctional Service, and also be an agent that will reduce crime rate in our society.
This item that will be donated to them today, they will have their shops. They will be employers of labour. I assure you, I will be working very closely with you, even though I’ll be going for retirement in the next five months, but even after my retirement, I assure you that my skilled ex-inmates are going to work together to make sure that Nigeria becomes a better place for all the citizens of Nigeria. This is a great achievement, and this I think God will reward you for that.”
Skypost.ng reports that the beneficiaries, who received training in tailoring, soap making, disinfectant and fragrance production, were presented with sewing machines, soap-making equipment and other tools to enable them start small businesses.
Founder and CEO of the Luchi Advocate Foundation, Barrister Oluchi Vivian Uche, pointed out that the initiative reflects the foundation’s commitment to humanitarian service, legal aid and the protection of vulnerable persons.
Oluchi, a legal practitioner, noted that her foundation was established to provide free legal services, support education and restore hope to disadvantaged members of society.
Oluchi disclosed that before the foundation was registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission in May 2026, she had sponsored the education of indigent students and supported hospitals and vulnerable persons. She added that the foundation has since expanded its outreach to correctional facilities in Kuje and Suleja, where inmates received meals, vocational equipment and relief materials.
According to her, the foundation plans to sponsor examination fees for 500 indigent students and carry out ten humanitarian outreaches before the end of the year, before transitioning to quarterly interventions.
She urged Nigerians to support vulnerable persons, defend their rights and embrace charitable acts regardless of their financial status.
She said, “This foundation is created from a place of deep passion to reach out to humanity. The goal is simple, protecting rights from the place of being a legal practitioner, rendering free legal services, down to the very vision that has to do with spreading smiles on the faces of the vulnerable, because you believe we are better together. So this vision dates back to even before it became official, in the sense that behind closed doors I’ve always believed in reaching out to people where I believe everybody has a right to education.
“I mean, no child has to be created to bear the consequences of loitering on the street, because when you find them loitering at the end of the day, they will be exploited negatively against each and every one of us thereafter, I started nursing a vision, how do I go beyond walking into schools and asking principals, can I have two, three names of students who are smart but are struggling, and I’ll quietly offset the school fees.
“So I said, why don’t I create a platform where individuals who want to reach out can come under. Like the very project that we’re about to start now. Paying the school fees of 500 students. There will be some persons that want to subscribe to such a vision, and they might be too exhausted to, you know, go to schools, find out students that are smart, that are vulnerable. There will be that wheel, that umbrella through which that can be achieved.
“So, this has been ongoing long enough, beyond times I can say, but officially registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission, just as short as May 2026 We’ve been certificated, and yes, here we are. We’ve gone to Koje prisons where we fed over 300 inmates with properly made meals. I’m not just talking about random meals and then we donated some items.
“I know those things keep their mind busy. So we donated some delivery machines, and then food, and lots of things, just 11th of May this year, and just two days ago, again on Saturday, we marched to Suleja prisons and then gave them some machines and lots of things, and here we are again today.”
Speaking further, Mr Christopher commended the foundation for complementing the correctional service’s efforts, stressing that rehabilitation, reformation and reintegration remain the agency’s core mandate. He noted that expanded vocational training programmes across FCT custodial centres are helping inmates acquire employable and entrepreneurial skills.
One of the beneficiaries of the LAF’s donations thanked the correctional service and the foundation for the opportunity, saying the skills acquired while in custody had transformed his life and enabled him to earn a living.
