The greenery, the fresh air and open spaces diffused the mental stench of crime so that for first-timers like me, you have no idea that you are among 271 juvenile offenders kept at the Senior Correctional Center in Accra.

Of course, the dead brown uniforms of prison officers ultimately gave away your location. Yet, the Center, formerly known as the Borstal Institute bore no semblance of horror and squalor typical of Nsawam Prison.

Here the boys go to school, get apprenticeship training in 17 different disciplines. Those who are studious can pass BECE and go on to Senior High School - "if they get sponsors". The crimes of the juveniles do not go on record too.

So on paper, their past is not supposed to chase them. That's on paper.

And so here we were, about 60 staff of The Multimedia Group, volunteers and Cargil staff pitched up at the former Borstal Institute last Sunday determined to share Easter, with its theme of forgiveness, with 271 young people who really needed it.

The juveniles aged between 12 to 21 years are there for petty offences, robbery, rape and manslaughter, Greater Accra PRO of the Prison Service Selinam Asem told us. She said the crimes of the juveniles are really no different from those committed by the jailed in serious prisons.

And like inmates in Nsawam, everyone lives on ₵1.80 a day - 60pesewas for breakfast, 60pesewas for lunch and yes - 60pesewas for Supper.

And shockingly, there are people who live like this even as free citizens. They are in a prison of their own – a prison of poverty.

HR manager Cargil, Francis Yohono could not hold back the tears at the more depressing conditions at Nsawam Prisons where Multimedia also visited.

And so the Borstal Institute’s constant need for an 'IMF relief' from free Ghanaians was very apparent. The young boys need the charity of donating soap, T-roll and toothpaste. They needed it desperately. So desperately that, the juveniles were soon aggressive in trying to get more than the budgeted share of one box of fruit juice per person.

In the hall where we assembled, you could see their stony, uncompromising faces and wonder how it was ever going to be possible to find a heart of flesh down inside.

For the prison officers, one of their hopes of effecting correction was naming their dormitories after saints, in the hope that the noble characters will, like dew, settle into their hearts as they slept under the roof of St. Andrew dormitory each night.

For Joy FM, there was a panel of motivation, Managing editor of Joy FM Elvis Kwashie, Programmes Director Kofi Ansah, Super Morning Show host Kojo Yankson, Joy FM presenter Paul Ankrah, HR of Cargil, Francis Yohono and Mary  Arkorful.

Even DJ Black had to find words - not a hot track – to motivate the youngsters.

Elvis Kwashie made a profound point – we are no different from the juvenile offenders.

Sure we looked successful, professional, eloquent, happy, free but it did not take away the deep underlying secret that some of us had stolen once or twice or an uncomfortable number like the balls in a snooker game.

And it was no far an idea to think that among us was somebody who downloaded his juvenile lust into an unsuspecting girl in the neighbourhood – of course without consent.

But not caught, not sentenced, not sent to a Correctional Center, it is easy to look refined and responsible.

So yeah, we looked different, but it didn’t mean we are different.

The most profound point was made by a mother. I mean an experienced mother. Mary Arkorful's Cargil has been a faithful contributor to Joy FM's Easter Soup Kitchen. And she came along once again when Multimedia decided to do prisoners some good.

Mary Arkorful

Standing before the audience, she saw through the fogginess of our surprise and confusion and even shock that 15-year olds were capable of crime in name but of course not on record.

Her eyes betrayed emotion and passion and mercy. She clutched the microphone fiercely in a way that also showed what she really wanted to do with one of the kids.

Hug them. Just hug them.

And she confessed that the reason why the 271 juveniles were there was because of the mistakes of their parents.

If they could have paid the school fees, provided better supervision and taken the real difficult task of inculcating some moral training in them, the 271 juveniles would not have made 271 mistakes.

But the boys didn’t show much appreciation of the errors of their parents. They didn’t look particularly disturbed by their plight. They looked quite boisterous and bullish.

Yet the personal responsibility for the actions of the juveniles was not lost on them or on the management of the Senior Correctional Center.

When you shout ‘boys!!’ the juveniles respond “shall rise again” – the slogan of the Correctional Center.

It was a slogan of hope and personal responsibility. And we all liked it. We liked the way they shouted in response, like the rallying cry of a battle-ready army beholding imminent death but fearless, nonetheless.

Boys!!!!”, Kofi Ansah shouted gleefully……. “shall rise again”, the baritone voices filled the room in response.

Just how they shall rise again appears to be left to chance, charity and choice.