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The twin gate shielding the vast compound from the main road was locked; as it always is. After a brief knock, an elderly security man peeped through an opening in the gate. He demanded sternly for my mission. Instantly, I realised that entry into the Ibadan-based Oyo Juvenile Correctional Institution is strictly prohibited unless with a genuine reason for visiting.
Beside the building was a group of children being given instructions by a staff. They were clad in oversized and worn-out clothes and some of them had no shoes on. Their appearance was a sharp contrast with the neat exterior of the premises. It was also an indication that beyond the big brown gate lies potentially unpalatable sights.While inside, that was the case.
“We need plastic chairs for the children; big and small. Recently, some churches provided benches for the children but we need the ones that small children can sit on.“We need drugs. Some of the children are defecating now. Even I have become a doctor here. We don’t have doctors.” “I noticed that several of the children were not neat. Some wore just shirts with several buttons missing. Also, there were some children with cerebral palsy with saliva dropping from their mouths and the officials were just using the children’s dirty clothes to clean the saliva.“There was no clinic in the institution but there was an NGO that had an office inside the institution. The NGO assisted the institution in several ways. They helped them get sponsors.
When told that the children were not wearing uniforms when TheCable visited the home, Raji said the government has made it a policy to ensure children have uniforms.Raji also insisted that the children are enrolled in public schools — but that they must spend a certain number of months at the institution before that happens.
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