Jailed Ex-Minister Teaches English To Inmates

Former deputy finance Minister, Victor Selormey, who is serving an eight-year jail term says he is overcoming the bitterness he felt when he was convicted for causing financial loss to the state. Mr. Selormey, who is incarcerated at the Nsawam Prison, says he is making very good use of his time by teaching fellow prisoners to speak English.

He is also motivating them to acquire skills which will help them lead normal lives when they are released. In an interview with State Television, Mr. Selormey said he will survive. “I had been treated very shabbily , I hadn’t been given a fair hearing and that made me think of several things I could do to people that I thought had treated me badly, but with time I have mellowed and I have had interactions with other prisoners, with some of the Christian community members that come into the prison. Catholic priests, protestant priest and they all say that, bitterness is not something that is health-enhancing or indeed that promotes spirituality,” he said.

“I have bought the idea, and at the moment I don’t care, I’m quite happy. I was almost always angry when I first came in here, but now I’m quite happy, I mean I’m serving time and it will come to an end”.

Mr. Selormey, who spotted a well-trimmed graying beard and appeared to have lost some weight, expressed concern about how some of his fellow prisoners seem to be wasting their lives away in prison. He suggested more budgetary support for the Prisons Service to enable it train prisoners to acquire functional skills to make them useful citizens.

“Indeed I didn’t know what prison was like; if I had known I would have made even more money available to the prison service, and I think any body who has anything to do with it must provide enough resources for training of those who do not have any skills”, Mr Selormey said.