Online Reporter
Sikhumbuzo Moyo [email protected]
IN a bid to contextualise the devastating effects of drug and substance abuse, the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Service (ZPCS) took inmates who committed crimes while under the influence of drugs to Royal College in Glen View 8, Harare, as part of an awareness campaign.
The inmates shared firsthand accounts of how drug and substance abuse led them into crime and ultimately incarceration, urging learners to avoid making similar life-altering mistakes.
The campaign also highlighted career opportunities within the correctional service while educating learners on how drug and substance abuse can negatively affect future employment prospects.
Royal College Head of Learning Standards, Assessment and Research, Mr Ishmael Jonga, commended ZPCS for bringing the programme to the school, saying it provided learners with practical lessons on the consequences of poor decisions and peer pressure.
“These firsthand testimonies will help our learners make informed decisions and stay away from drugs and crime. We appreciate ZPCS for investing in the future of our children,” said Mr Jonga.
A teacher at the school, Ms Patient Chamboko said the programme promoted interactive learning by exposing learners to the harsh realities of drug and substance abuse and its consequences.
One of the highlights of the programme was a testimony by inmate Michael Simbiyo, who is serving a sentence for murder. He told learners that drug abuse played a significant role in the offence that led to his imprisonment and robbed him of the opportunity to pursue his academic ambitions.
“I lost many years of my life because of drug and substance abuse. I started abusing drugs due to peer pressure at school, and it eventually led me into crime. I urge you not to make the same mistake I did because it resulted in my incarceration,” he said.
The campaign forms part of ZPCS’s ongoing efforts to promote crime prevention through community engagement while advancing offender rehabilitation in line with its correctional mandate.This version is tighter, avoids repetition (particularly of “drug and substance abuse”), improves transitions, and reads more like a standard Chronicle news story while preserving all the key facts.
