After her husband Emmanuel Chukwulozie was imprisoned for 11 months under the hazardous conditions of the prison cells, Angela Chukwulozie witnessed the conditions of the prison dampen the spirits of men considered condemned. Considering the dignity of the man imprisoned, it did not seem right that human beings should be subjected to such conditions.Her frequent visits motivated her to do something about those gruelling conditions. Upon dying shortly after his release, Emmanuel Chukwulozie’s experience moved Mrs Chukwulozie even further. She decided to set up the Okechukwu Emmanuel Memorial foundation to help prisoners who needed a more compassionate reintroduction to the outside world.
The Okechukwu Emmanuel Foundation has started its operations with two young men. One of them is Towei Loko. Towei was arrested and imprisoned for 5 years. Angela Chukwulozie helped facilitate his release and relocation into the OEC Foundation quarters where he is undergoing therapy currently.
When asked what he wants to do at this point in his transformation, he says he would love to go into business to sell men’s clothes. The OEC Foundation is working on an entrepreneurial training program so men like Towei can learn the skill set it takes to start and sustain a business.
The other man in the OEC Facility is Richard Akpan. Although the police claim to have caught him with a stolen vehicle, Richard was imprisoned for 4 years without trial. He is currently sharing the OEC Foundation quarters with Towei. When asked what he wants to do now he is out of prison, he says he wants to be a commercial driver. Currently, the OEC Foundation is helping him find his way through driving school.
The mission of the foundation is to help groom young men into a version of themselves they can be proud of; to provide the care and attention that they need to recover from what the harsh realities inflicted upon them in prison. Our vision is to give each man a reason to believe in the possibilities of their dreams. We aim to provide them with the assurance that they are members of society, and good can still come out of them irrespective of their past lives. At this point we operate as a half-way house, providing legal services and shelter to ex-convicts trying to find their way without family support. The Okechukwu Emmanuel Foundation has a residential facility where the young men are housed, fed, and taught leadership, entrepreneurship, and collaboration skills for the period of 6 months in a well furnished 3 bedroom bungalow apartment located in Sango-tedo (Lekki, Lagos state).
Our facility can only accommodate 3 prisoners at this date, but in the future, we are hoping to expand in order to reach more people.
We have Friends Of The Foundation who visit the centre and help with the counselling. Also their health is of utmost priority to the Foundation. The centre is still in the process of figuring out which health insurance packages would best be suited to their welfare. We are looking forward to expanding and partnering with others interested in sharing their services or goods that will make our residential facility a safe haven for the minds of those once considered restless. We welcome donations and help in order for us to help more prisoners and accommodate more of these people.
