The Catholic Archdiocese of Accra, on Tuesday, donated assorted sanitary items to the Ghana Prisons Service to be given to prisoners to observe the hygiene protocols directed by the Ghana Health Service.

The items comprise hand washing containers, gallons of liquid soap and bleach, disposable tissue paper, a rice cooker, disposable gloves, gallons of hand sanitizers and disinfectants.

The Most Reverend John Bonaventure Kwofie, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Accra, who made the presentation, said as the nation observed the preventive mechanisms, the inmates, who were more exposed to the infection as a result of the poor social distancing in their facilities needed sanitary items to protect themselves.

The Church, as part of its measures to control community infection also considered the inmates.

He encouraged other benevolent religious institutions and individuals to support the inmates as they were more vulnerable to the COVID-19.

He, however, commended those public spirited bodies and individuals who had in diverse ways supported government in the fight against the respiratory disease.

The Director General of Prisons Mr Patrick Darko Missah, who received the items on behalf of the inmates in Accra, expressed profound gratitude to the Church for their support.

The Catholic Church, he said, had been an old partner to the Prisons Service, hence they were not surprised at the urgency with which they heeded to their call for support.

“When we talk about the Prisons Service, getting assistance from faith based organisations, the Catholic Church cannot be left out, as it has done a lot for the Service since time immemorial”.

DGP Missah assured the Church that the Service would ensure that the items were distributed to the intended beneficiaries.

The Service had quarantined the inmates and restricted their movements even before the lockdown, he said, adding that, they were doing their best to ensure their safety.

He admonished Prison Officers to comport themselves and be cautious in their movements by observing the COVID-19 preventive measures.

“For now, it is only our officers who can go in and out of the Prison, so if they don’t take care and go to contract the virus, they will infect all the inmates, which could be disastrous,” he said.