RCCG saved me from death sentence, says ex-inmate

A 38-year-old former inmate, Fakorede Olawale, on Friday explained how the intervention of the Redeemed Christian Church of God Prison and Hospital Ministry helped him navigate what he described as the darkest period of his life after he was sentenced to death by hanging.

Olawale shared his testimony at the seventh edition of the RCCG National Prison and Hospital Ministry Conference, themed, “A New Beginning,” held at RCCG House of Favour, Redemption City, Ogun State.

According to him, he was arrested in 2015 while in his 300 level at the university on charges bordering on cultism, armed robbery, attempted murder and other offences.

He said he spent seven years in prison awaiting trial, a period during which he lost his father, freedom and education.

He said, “Due to some bad choices I made during my secondary school days, I joined a cult. It was not because I came from a broken home. My late father was a minister in this church and my mother is a deaconess.”

Olawale said he encountered the RCCG Prison and Hospital Ministry while in custody and gave his life to Christ in 2017.

However, he noted that his conversion did not shield him from the legal consequences of his actions.

He said, “In 2022, after seven years of awaiting trial, I was sentenced to death by hanging. I was given two death sentences, two life imprisonments, one 14-year sentence and another 10-year prison term. After that, I was transferred to Abeokuta prison.”

Olawale said he was eventually set free through the intervention of the ministry.

He, however, did not state the process that led to his freedom.

“I wrote a letter to Daddy G.O. in 2024 asking for prayers and help. I remember he sent one of his pastors to pray for me. Till today, I do not know how God did it. I know that amid those difficulties, God’s mercy found me. As of today, I am the first and last person in my family to ever go to prison.”

Speaking at the conference, the Secretary to the General Overseer, Pastor Niyi Adebanjo, said not everyone in correctional centres is a convicted criminal, noting that many inmates are still awaiting trial.

Adebanjo stressed the need for continuous evangelism and support for inmates, saying spiritual transformation remains central to rehabilitation efforts.

Not everybody in prison is a criminal. Some are just awaiting trial. There are forces in this world that keep people in prison. Sometimes, they are human forces. Somebody may hate you, lie against you and get you locked up, and at the end of the day, the fellow is forgotten behind bars.

“What RCCG is doing and what we will continue to do is to empower our people to visit prisons. When the word of God melts the hardness in people’s hearts, it becomes easier for God’s power to transform lives,” he added.

Earlier, the National Chairman of the RCCG Prison and Hospital Ministry, Pastor Ariyo Popoola, appreciated the support of Pastor Adeboye, his wife, Folu, and members of the ministry for sustaining intervention programmes across correctional centres.

According to him, the ministry has provided food items, educational materials, pro bono legal services and payment of hospital bills, while also rehabilitating vehicles used in correctional facilities.

Popoola also revealed plans to construct a N600m “Halfway Home” on a 10-acre parcel of land to provide temporary accommodation and reintegration support for ex-inmates after their release.

He said, “The impactful work we do in prisons often loses continuity after inmates are released. Although many are spiritually and vocationally transformed in custody, a large number face accommodation challenges upon release.

“Many are rejected by their families and there are limited rehabilitation structures where they can stay temporarily while adjusting and reintegrating into society.”

He called on the government to pursue reforms that would strengthen the justice system and improve conditions within correctional facilities.

Speaking on the theme, the Special Assistant to the General Overseer on Administration, Pastor Oladele Balogun, described a new beginning as a divine reset made possible through God’s intervention.

He said, “A new beginning is not dependent on your location, condition or past. It is dependent on God’s intervention. It is a divine reset, a supernatural intervention and a fresh opportunity.”

In his address, the Assistant Controller-General of Corrections, Dele Ajibogun, urged stakeholders to move beyond rhetoric and pursue measurable reforms.

He said, “The theme, ‘A New Beginning,’ calls on the government, the Nigerian Correctional Service, police, judiciary, civil service, NGOs and philanthropists to move from rhetoric to measurable reform.

“The Nigerian Correctional Service cannot do it alone. The church and other faith-based institutions have historically been the conscience of society and first responders to human suffering.”