Roraima Airways on Monday donated five television sets and DVD players to the Guyana Prison Service during a simple ceremony at the correctional facility.
The donation was accepted by acting Director of Prisons (DoP,) Gladwin Samuels, on Monday. Roraima Airways Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Captain Gerald Gouveia, made the donations at the Guyana Prison Service Sports Club on Camp Street, Georgetown. Samuels said the donation is timely since the prison service has implemented stronger support programmes for the rehabilitation of inmates within the system. The rehabilitation effort has a greater purpose in improving lives and ensuring safety within communities in which criminal activities have been prevalent.

“We have a responsibility to rehabilitate persons who are sent to this institution so that when they leave they can go back to their various communities better equipped and able to meaningfully contribute to those communities. These televisions will go a far way in terms of being used as teaching aids especially for persons entering prison and are not literate,” Samuels told the small gathering.

He said the donations are significant and televisions will be utilised in training and in keeping prisoners abreast with news and other programmes reflecting what is happening in the general society, on the outside. He thanked Captain Gouveia and Roraima Airways and called on other businesses to partner with the GPS in making Guyana more secure.
“The quality of work that we do as an organisation will make Guyana a safer place.

So I would like to encourage other businesses to see it as an example. We need help in a number of areas which will enhance our ability to rehabilitate persons sent to this institution and in doing so will create a better working environment. Persons will be able to go to sleep knowing that persons in their communities who would have left this institution are no longer a threat to their communities and in general this nation,” Samuels said.

Captain Gouveia said he had made a promise to the GPS to donate the television sets since he held the position of Chairman of the Prison Sentence Management Board. At the time he “travelled throughout the prison system at the various locations. Since then one of the things we identified was the issue of the rehabilitation of the prisoners and as well tools to help with the training of Prison Officers.”

He made the promise just before he vacated the post and has also added a box filled with educational DVDs to the gift set, which will be beneficial to both prisoners and officers. Gouveia said he remains committed to the prison service and will work closely with the new Chairman of the Prison Sentence Management Board, of which he is still a member, to contribute toward the prison’s development.