How Abuja rehab centre turned to breeding ground for criminals

Many challenges that include moral decadence, drug peddling and staff racketeering are threatening the general administration of the Abuja Vocational Rehabilitation Centre established to take care of vagrants in the nation’s capital city, Abuja. The centre admits for rehabilitation persons arrested on Abuja streets, including beggars and women of easy virtue. Located at Kuchiko, a […]

Many challenges that include moral decadence, drug peddling and staff racketeering are threatening the general administration of the Abuja Vocational Rehabilitation Centre established to take care of vagrants in the nation’s capital city, Abuja.

The centre admits for rehabilitation persons arrested on Abuja streets, including beggars and women of easy virtue.

Located at Kuchiko, a community on the outskirts of Bwari town, the centre, which is being run by the FCT Social Development Secretariat, has trained many people with various skills including; metal fabrication, tailoring, electronics, shoe and leather production, among others. Starter packs and funds are usually given to those who finish the training.

Daily Trust on Sunday also gathered that mentally challenged persons and drug addicts are also rehabilitated at the centre.

However, it was learnt that the centre briefly went out of operation following the departure of Malam Nasir El-Rufa’i as Minister of the FCT, who initiated the centre.

However, in 2011, then FCT minister, Sen Bala Mohammed, recommissioned the centre and handed it over to a charity organisation, Society Against Prostitution and Child Labour in Nigeria (SAPCLN), to operate on contract.

 

But, while the centre is expected to rehabilitate waywards in the society, Daily Trust on Sunday learnt that many “rehabilitated” inmates who have now found themselves as instructors at the centre  are allegedly smuggling in drugs and selling to members of the centre’s community.

There are also cases of sexual exploitation between some of the instructors and their female trainee inmates. Such scandals have allegedly led to a pregnancy involving one of the inmates under rehabilitation.

A source at the centre explained that the lady involved gave birth to a baby boy and the baby was taken to an orphanage that has a partnership agreement with the centre.

“The issue became public when the student-turned-teacher insisted that the baby is his blood and should be handed over to him,” our source said.

There are also allegations of selling of cows donated to the centre during Sallah or Christmas, and the ones confiscated by the FCTA from the city centre and donated to the centre, along with the selling of foodstuff from the centre’s store.

Other scandals are setting free persons sent to the centre after paying money, instead of rehabilitating them or releasing them freely to their families after an undertaking from the families to look after them.

Sources who spoke to Daily Trust on Sunday said the crises rocking the centre had affected normal class activities and other activities at the centre.

Apart from the issue of moral decadence at the centre, staff racketeering is also a major issue.

A former staff of the centre, Aminu Yusuf, who was disengaged recently alongside many others based on allegation of absconding from duty, said they were unjustly sacked after about 10 years of service.

Yusuf explained that, “We were recruited and engaged at the centre by the FCT Administration of Sen Bala Mohammed.

“However, we were not paid any salaries for about nine months. So the school’s principal lodged a complaint to the then Secretary of the FCTA Social Development Secretariat.”

He further said the centre again ran into trouble in 2015 with the present FCTA under Malam Muhammad Musa Bello as the contract to SAPCLN was terminated based on “financial burden on the administration”.

Another disengaged staff who was a shoe and leather instructor, Umar Lawan, said about 15 of them wrote a letter to the minister to complain about their unpaid salaries of one year and six months.

 

“That was necessitated because the principal of the centre seemed to be nor longer concerned about our concern. He was the only person that had been engaged as a full staff at the centre, while all the other staff members serve as casual workers.

“So it’s open that he wanted the centre to remain like that so that no one could challenge him or have a say on how the centre should be run,” Lawan said.

It was further learnt that following the complaint of the disengaged staff members, an auditor was sent to the school by the FCTA to ascertain the veracity of the claims.

Speaking on that regard, Lawan claimed that the auditor could not meet many of them as he arrived the centre after closing hours.

Lawan further said, “However, the principal summoned some staff on the list in the complaint letter to appear before the auditor, but five of us that led in the struggle were not involved.

“The names of those invited were captured by the auditor and they were later paid fully for their one year six months’ arrears.

“Those of us that the principal considered as his opponents for daring to lodge the complaint directly to the minister’s office were paid only six months’ salary arrears. The next thing we received were sack letters given to five of us through him.’’

A serving staff of the school also alleged that the principal thereafter engaged some non-teaching staff like gardeners, guards, cleaners, and some former students to serve as instructors.

He explained that, “Their names were smuggled into the salary payroll of the school as instructors even though some of them are not getting the actual amount paid.”

When contacted, the Principal of the centre, Bala Tsoho Musa, who has been removed from his position, referred our reporter to the FCTA Social Development Secretariat.

The acting Secretary of Social Development at the secretariat, Dr Kevin Ike, confirmed the removal of the principal.

Speaking to Daily Trust on Sunday during a visit to his office on Wednesday, Dr Ike who denied all the allegations at the centre, explained that the principal’s appointment was overdue; having spent about 17 years in the position, hence his redeployment to the social welfare department of the secretariat.

Dr Ike said, “The school will be rejigged; food would be provided on a three-square basis, while the centre will also witness a kind of renovation that includes rebuilding of its fallen fence.”