Upper Buchanan Central Prison Inmates Begged For Rehabilitation

Inmates facing various degrees of sentence at the Upper Buchanan Central Prison in Grand Bassa County over the weekend begged for mercy, saying they are willing to change when reintegrated into society.

On Saturday, the Bureau of Corrections at the Ministry of Justice headed by Assistant Minister for Corrections, Eddie S. Tarawali brought out 16 inmates from the Upper Buchanan prison to help clean some parts of Buchanan city.

At the cleaning sites on Robert and Kilby Streets in Buchanan, the inmates vowed to change their behaviors and attitudes upon return into society.

The inmates whom some were sentenced for 15, 25 years and for life imprisonment said they have realized their mistakes and will not repeat those acts that led them to jail.

Clarence Garway 31, one of the inmates says he was jailed in 2016 after he was found guilty for raping a 13-year-old girl.

Garway amongst other things called on his friends, parents, and guardians to continue advising their children before they end up the same way.

Another inmate, Aaron Gargar 29, says he been in prison for ten years.

He said he’s innocent of a murder crime levied against him for which he was sentenced in 2008 for life time: adding “God is the Judge of all Judges and will one day intervene in my situation.”

Gargar who burst up in tears explained that his life imprisonment sentence came about when he saw a dead body lying in an isolated area in his community and reported the situation to the police which led him to jail and later on appearance in court when he was found guilty of murder, a crime he said he did not commit.

Other said they have been in prison 15-20 years. Meanwhile Minister Tarawali says the Ministry of Justice is working out modalities to design program that will gear toward rehabilitating some inmates in the fifteen political subdivisions of Liberia.

Minister Tarawali expressed that some of the inmates will be productive citizens when they are properly rehabilitated.

He used the medium and called on citizens in Grand Bassa County to be willing to accept their brothers when reintegrated.

Tarawali assured the inmates of rehabilitation and cautioned them not to return to their wicked behavior when reintegrated. The 16 inmates were all males.