Commissioner of Prisons
Friends and colleagues
Our valued volunteers and family members
Ladies and gentlemen
Introduction
1. Good evening, everyone. I am very happy to be able to join you for the Singapore Prison Service (SPS) Volunteer Awards Ceremony this year.
2. Before I continue with my speech, I would like to wish all of you here and my colleagues from SPS, a happy National Day.
SG60 Narrative
3. Tomorrow, Singapore will celebrate its 60th year of nation-building. SG60 provides platforms to connect Singaporeans with one another deeper, show care for each other and contribute to our refreshed social compact under ForwardSG. This milestone year gives us an opportunity to reflect on our journey as a nation and reaffirm our commitment to building an inclusive society where every Singaporean has a place and purpose.
4. This takes time, commitment and drive to make it happen. Everyone here today has exemplified your passion to help inmates, ex-offenders and their families to rebuild their lives for a stronger Singapore together. And I thank everyone here together with your families for doing that. Thank you very much.
Partnering Volunteers to be Force Multiplier
5. And, I am also happy to announce that SPS will honor a record-high of 651 volunteers and community partners at today’s ceremony. 567 dedicated volunteers will receive the Long Service Award, and 9 outstanding volunteers will receive the Throughcare Hero Award. We will also recognise 75 community partners and agencies for their invaluable contributions.
6. SPS has more than 4,000 volunteers today, a significant increase from just 200 volunteers in year 2000. We also partner with more than 70 organisations to deliver impactful programmes for inmates and ex-offenders. This growth is not just about numbers, but it reflects the expanding heart of our community.
7. As volunteers, you play an important role in our rehabilitation efforts. You are role models to inmates and ex-offenders, offering safe spaces for them to voice their concerns. Your guidance helps them navigate challenges while maintaining focus on their rehabilitation journey.
8. When inmates and ex-offenders overcome their challenges and desist from crime and drugs, you celebrate their success with them. Embarking on this transformative journey demands not just hard work, but genuine heart work – a lot comes from here to create a lasting change, and I've met many of you who shared your inspiring journeys. Those moments – your stories, your journey – keeps us, my colleagues at SPS and MHA, going.
9. Your dedication to this heart work, where every interaction is guided by empathy and genuine care, has earned international recognition. The declaration of the International Day for Community Volunteers Supporting Offender Reintegration in 2024 during the 2nd World Congress for Community Volunteers, stands as a testament to the crucial role volunteers play in the reintegration process.
Recognising Volunteers and Partners
10. Your dedication is truly inspirational and I want to take some time to share about two of our volunteers who are here today, supporting inmates in their rehabilitation journey.
11. Elizabeth has been a volunteer with SPS for 20 years, where she organises Toastmasters sessions for inmates, teaching them speech preparation and delivery techniques. A key purpose of these sessions is to inspire inmates to reflect on their goals and aspirations while learning speechcraft techniques.
12. Over the years, she has seen inmates transform from nervous individuals who struggled to speak in front of an audience into confident and competent speakers. She admires their determination to improve, guiding them as they develop their speaking abilities. Elizabeth shares their joy when they deliver heartfelt speeches about their life experiences.
13. Twenty years is a significant commitment, sustained by the strong sense of teamwork she experiences with other volunteers. Through the years, Elizabeth grew in her understanding of inmates and this understanding fuels her dedication to making a difference in their lives. Congratulations Elizabeth for getting the 20 years Long Service Award. Congratulations. Thank you, Elizabeth.
14. Mr Ramli Abdullah is a desistor volunteer who is awarded the Throughcare Hero Award this year. Being the founder of Reforming Support Group (RSG), he dedicates himself to making a difference by uplifting others and helping them rebuild their lives.
15. When working with ex-offenders, Ramli's strength lies in his ability to listen and encourage. Ramli recognises the importance of building resilience and regaining hope for the individual. He encourages them to see that every problem has a solution and reminds them to focus on the progress they’ve already made.
16. He believes success isn't about major achievements but about making small, consistent changes. This philosophy fuels Ramli’s commitment and optimism in supporting ex-offenders.
17. When I first joined MHA more than five years ago, I visited Ramli and his late mother at her home. I was touched by the way he took care of his mother, who was his inspiration in his rehabilitation journey. Even though his mother has passed away, Ramli continues to help fellow desistors, and works together with the community to ensure that no one is left behind, that support is given to those who need help, and those who are going through the desistor journey continue to be motivated.
18. There was one day when I visited a few homes with him. From the way that he spoke to the families and to the desistors, I rcould tell that he connected with them much better than I did. As such, I realised that it means that we need to work together to connect to many more people so that we can help more to lead better lives. So, congratulations Ramli for being awarded the Throughcare Hero Award.
19. I spoke about two of them, but they are just two of the many volunteers today who show heart work at its core – with empathy and dedication that transform lives and create pathways for successful rehabilitation.
20. I have met many of you working very hard behind the scene. Not many people knows what you do. One day, when I was walking in my constituency, I met a group of people sitting together. They told me that they were there to support this person who was with them – a Singaporean just got released from prison. They were there to support him, and they themselves were desistors. So, I felt very happy that we have a framework, but even on the ground, we see our community supporting each other at the different levels.
21. So, you are doing great work. We really appreciate your hard work and your time and resources that you spend to support our friends and their families.
22. Community partners also play a crucial role in supporting inmates, families and children. Lutheran Community Care Services (LCCS), one of the Token of Appreciation recipient, has been one of the key partners of SPS. Through Restorative Practice, LCCS empowers families to maintain meaningful relationships with their incarcerated loved ones. In 2022, Project Rekindle was introduced to help rebuild family relationships by providing individual engagement, family circles and group work. Thus far, it has helped 30 inmates rebuild relationships with 48 family members they had lost contact with.
23. The dedicated work of community partners like LCCS is instrumental in strengthening family bonds and supporting successful reintegration into the community through the use of Restorative practices. And I want to thank LCCS for working together with other community partners.
24. Last week, I joined a group of the desistor parents and their children for an anti-drug abuse awareness talk organised by RSG at an LCCS venue. This is one way that we collaborate and support one another, to not only support rehabilitation and reintegration, but also go upstream to ensure that our loved ones are safe from the scourge of drugs.
Growing Impact, Together
25. Today, SPS has one of the lowest 2-year recidivism rate in the world, at 21.3%. This remarkable milestone would not have been possible without you, our dedicated volunteers.
26. Statistics have also shown that inmates with drug antecedents are three times more likely to reoffend compared to non-drug inmates. This makes the work of our desistor volunteers even more inspiring. They have overcome significant challenges to rebuild their lives, and their lived experiences make them powerful role models of determination and resilience as they support others in their reintegration journey.
27. We also recognise that support cannot end at the prison gates. The real challenges often begin when inmates return to the community, facing various obstacles in their reintegration journey. This is why we need to strengthen our aftercare support by mobilising more volunteers like yourselves.
28. As we continue to support inmates and ex-offenders, we are committed to helping you grow and develop your capabilities. SPS has refined its volunteer training framework, called “Igniting and Maximising Partners’ Agility for Correctional Transformation” or “IMPACT” for short. IMPACT develops core competency skills of volunteers and community partners and offers tiered training pathways so that your efforts can lead to more meaningful outcomes.
29. Training spaces across all platforms and modalities will increase to approximately 15,000 by 2028. With the changing rehabilitation landscape, you will also be equipped with skills to work with different inmate profiles such as the elderly, women and those with intellectual disabilities.
30. These training provisions along with the experience and expertise you already possess, would greatly benefit inmates, ex-offenders and their families. SPS will continue to partner everyone here in providing effective throughcare support to inmates, ex-offenders and their families.
31. Before I end my speech, I would like to also thank the family members for your support. Your loved ones would not be able to spend their weekends, or many hours volunteering – out there, within the cluster, or the Drug Rehabilitation Centres (DRC) – without your support. Thank you for giving your heart, your soul, your time, and sharing with, us for the goodness of others. So, please join me to give a big round of applause to our family members.
32. I was having a conversation with Miss Salimah from New Life Stories earlier, and she was saying that together with her colleagues, they are very happy to be able to volunteer. But she said that she is inspired by SPS officers, and the commitment, passion and support given. I have received this feedback not only from Miss Salimah – I've received so many of such feedback about the commitment, passion and the hard work of our SPS officers. Join me to thank them. Please give them a big round of applause.
Conclusion
33. So, in conclusion, I extend my heartfelt congratulations to all our award winners. Your selfless dedication to helping inmates, ex-offenders, and their families rebuild their lives exemplifies the very best of our community spirit.
34. In this significant year as we celebrate SG60, your commitment reminds us that a stronger Singapore is built on the willingness to uplift others, and care for one another to build a more resilient and inclusive society.
35. Thank you all for being our SPS volunteers and happy National Day! Thank you.
