Just jail me, only let me read

• Ex-prisoner has his fingers crossed as he awaits verdict on plea over schooling

The ex-prisoner approached the prison gates with a peculiar request — to be re-admitted into prison.

At first, Naivasha Maximum Security Prison authorities thought it was a sick joke, but the reality is finally dawning on them. They are now grappling with how to deal with the rare appeal from Joel Mwangi, 33.

Mr Mwangi, with four other former inmates, are willing to walk back to jail — not to serve fresh terms, but to pursue studies, which they did not finish after completing their jail terms.

Mr Mwangi had been sentenced to one-year by a Naivasha court for a minor offence in 2001. Immediately after conviction, he was thrown into a spin.

“I thought all my dreams had hit a dead end, and I was depressed. But I decided to accept the inevitable,” he recalls.

He was first taken to Annex Prison next to the main jail where he was assigned kitchen duties. “I was a sweeper, a task I found totally boring. Keeping the dining hall clean was eating into my confidence,” he said.

Soon he, requested to be transferred to the Maximum Prison to pursue higher education, a plea that a senior officer willingly acceded to. He began by studying business calculations but before he could finish, Mr Mwangi was freed following a Presidential Amnesty after serving only six months.

“By the time I was released, I was already booked for the exam,” he said.

He returned and sat the exam, scoring impressive grades. For the former part-time secondary school teacher; the certificate was a big boost.

They teamed up with another inmate, Bonaventure Mtalii, and helped to establish the secondary school section at the penal institution.

“Few inmates were willing to take up studies, but we were determined,” says Mr Mwangi. The pioneer teacher taught mathematics.

He was soon to realise the certificate he acquired was not enough to secure him a well-paying job. After more than eight years since leaving prison, Mr Mwangi found the going getting tough and could only secure contractual jobs.

“My potential employers have been categorical that I must attain a diploma,” he says.

Motivational speaker

He toyed with ideas on how to improve his grades, but the cash was his main undoing.

“I finally settled on returning to jail where studying was for free,” he confesses.

Mr Mwangi who doubles up as motivational speaker could not think of committing a crime to land back into jail. It would set a bad precedent.

He decided to visit the local probation office and ask for help. But they, too, were taken aback by the request.