CSI partners give former convicts a second chance

KOTA KINABALU: Former convicts who were given a second chance in life have proved themselves to be better people and have not reverted to their old ways.

This was the case of a parolee who was given that chance by businessman John Lam. When Lam was approached by a friend to hire a man under parole several years ago, the idea first shocked and scared him.

“I was afraid and worried because that person was an inmate and still serving his sentence, although he was under parole,” he said during a career carnival between people under bond or parole with employers at the state Prisons Department here.

“I had never heard of such collaborations before and was not sure what risk I could be putting myself or my staff under if I hired him,” he said on Friday.

However, after much persuasion from the friend, Lam took a leap of faith and gave the parolee a chance and discovered that it was the right decision.

He remembered how disciplined that person was, how he stood still like a soldier when speaking to his superiors, how he was always ready to carry out any tasks, and how he would obey instructions without questions.

To date, Lam has hired over a dozen parolees and encourages other employers to give these people a chance.

Renowned businessman and agriculture mentor Datuk Yap Yun Fook described the parolees and ex-convicts he had worked with as having a high drive for learning.

“They may have made mistakes, but they have served their time. I am sure those who are on parole have learnt their lesson and truly want to change,” he said.

During the event, two former convicts, Norazmie Naim and Ray James, shared how the corporate smart internship (CSI) programme between the Prisons Depart- ment and companies helped them start over.

Norazmie, who is now a factory maintenance worker, said he was given a chance to work with a brick-making company while under parole a few years ago and during that period, he learnt new skills and started to have a clear objective in life.

“I was an addict and I was jailed for it. After the CSI programme, I realised that I needed to change and that I must work for the change that I want in my life. I am thankful that someone was willing to give me that chance,” he said.

He said if society refused to give people like him a second chance, they will never reform and will continue going back to jail.

Ray, a palm oil cultivator and mechanic, thanked the Prisons Department for its intervention programmes and the people who gave him a chance to work while under parole some years back.

“With the right guidance and the second chance I was given, I am now free of addiction, and I have my own success story to tell,” he said.

“Intervention is needed as the right opportunity could make or break a person. I am glad I was given that chance and now, I am a new man,” Ray added.

The Prisons Department has seen a total of 52,306 inmates on parole between 2008 and 2022, out of which 48,813 successfully completed their parole.

For the CSI programme, since 2016, the country has seen the involvement of parolees go from just 25 people to 4,998 in 2022.

The number of companies taking part in the programme has increased from just one in 2016 to 117 in 2022.

This brings the total number of parolees who had completed the programme to 14,151.