891 Prison assistants pass out from Ankaful training school
Eight hundred and ninety-one prison support assistants have passed out from the Ankaful Prisons Training School after weeks of training.
The batch is the first of 5,000 youth targeted to be trained under the Prison Support Assistants (PSA) module.
The PSA module under the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), in collaboration with the Ghana Prisons Service, targets training auxiliary support personnel for the Prisons Service.
The module provides employment and experience for youth between 18 and 35, to assist prison service officers with various operational tasks, with some opportunities for permanent absorption into the mainstream service.
The Chief Executive Officer of the YEA, Malik Basintale, said at a passing out parade for the PSAs at Ankaful last Thursday that the government had committed to increasing the salaries of the PSAs by 60 per cent.
Currently, PSAs receive about GH¢800 monthly.
Mr Basintale also said the YEA was committed to absorbing the PSAs into the mainstream Prisons Service.
He said it was in the interest of the YEA to ensure that many PSAs were absorbed into the Prisons Service after their two years in service to create jobs and enhance their well-being.
Uphold values
He, however, emphasised that this would depend on their ability to uphold the values of hard work, dedication and discipline. He urged them to exhibit these values to make them worthy of admission into the mainstream Prisons Service.
Mr. Basintale said the opportunity came with a health insurance package to motivate them to offer their best.
"Let Ghana be proud of you and let the Prisons Service enjoy your stay with them," he said.
He reiterated that he would work to ensure that Ghanaian youth had access to every available opportunity to be employed.
He said the training undoubtedly had left them well-mannered, well-cultured, patriotic citizens and advised them to commit to making their mark in their places of work.
Awards
Awards were given to trainees who had excelled.
The Commandant award went to Maxwell Osah, while the Best in Academic award went to Makafui Tettehvia.
The Best in Drill award was received by Nicholas Quao Kwandu, with the Overall Best Trainee award going to Lawrence Ozor Lamptey.
