Prison inmates awarded for community service involvement

SINGAPORE — When she completes her jail term at the end of next year, 25-year-old Anna hopes to not only pursue a degree in hospitality and management, but also do volunteer work at orphanages.

Apart from her love of children, Anna’s interest in volunteer work was also sparked by her involvement in community service under the National Youth Achievement Award (NYAA) Programme since last year.

Anna (not her real name) was among 82 inmates who received the NYAA from Senior Minister of State (Law) Indranee Rajah at a ceremony held at Tanah Merah Prison yesterday. Another 14 award recipients did not attend the ceremony, with some of them having completed their jail terms, said the Singapore Prison Service (SPS).

More than 1,460 awards have been given out to inmates who participated in the NYAA Programme since its implementation by the SPS in 2000.

To participate, inmates must be medically fit and between 18 and 25 years old, and have displayed good conduct. The programme lasts for five months or more, depending on the activities planned. Like all NYAA participants nationwide, inmates are required to participate in four areas: community service, skills development, expedition and exploration, as well as physical recreation.

Assistant Superintendent (ASP) Nurazura Mohamed Jani, the officer in charge of the programme, said it gives inmates a chance to engage in community service.

She also shared how the inmates’ involvement with the outside community, such as a performance the NYAA recipients put together for seniors at CARElderly Seniors Activity Centre in Circuit Road late last year, resonated with the participants themselves. “... It makes them (the inmates) think about their families,” she said.

Anna, who received an NYAA Silver Award, recalled feeling a sense of achievement when the seniors at the centre shed tears of appreciation after their performance. “I feel so happy I have achieved something. I can make all these people so happy,” she said.

Fellow Silver Award recipient, 26-year-old Sam (not his real name), added: “They were so appreciative (of) all we had done ... and it reminded me of my grandmother.”

Sam, who is taking his A Levels, hopes to secure a place at a local university or the Lasalle College of the Arts to pursue his passion in music production on his release later this year.

Sam’s mother noted that her son, who could be “irresponsible at times” and had not cared much about his family in the past, has become quite a different person. He now acts like a responsible older brother, who offers advice to his younger siblings on life matters, such as their educational pursuits, through his letters from prison, she added.