Speaking to FMT, Kajang Prison’s director Abdul Halim Ma-hasan said the rehabilitation programme, known as the “Program Penempatan Semula Penghuni Penjara”, is aimed at helping former convicts adjust to life outside of prison.

Halim, who is overseeing the rehabilitation of 6,870 prisoners, said it was not easy for prisoners after their release, particularly to find jobs, as some companies have concerns over hiring ex-convicts.

“Just yesterday, 150 people were released and most of them have no place to go,” he told FMT.

Such a scenario, he said, could lead to the former convicts becoming desperate and going back to a life of crime.

“Eventually, they may end up in prison again. That is what we want to prevent.”

Halim says helping the former convicts get a job is not just beneficial to them but also the country as it can reduce dependence on foreign labour.

He said the programme, launched last year, sees prison authorities working with NGOs to provide jobs upon their release.

“Anyone is welcome to come here and get prisoners who are about to be released to go and work for them.”

Halim said the Prisons Department wanted to work with employers, companies and NGOs to provide jobs for convicts who will be released soon.

“It is a noble act to give the former inmates a job,” he said after an event at the Kajang prison.

Meanwhile, the head of Pertubuhan Rakan Ghullam Kembali (Pergak), which provides job opportunities to former inmates, said employers should give inmates a chance, just as they gave foreign workers the opportunity to work.

Pergak’s chairman Siti Murni Sheikh Ahmad said they had a placement programme called i-Kembali to help the former prisoners get jobs in six sectors, namely manufacturing, services, construction, agriculture, marketing and management.

Employers, she said, need not worry about making use of the programme as it follows the government’s SOPs.