Ex-offenders learn to use apps to catch up with the times

When Mr Johann left prison in late 2017 after almost four years behind bars, he was surprised to see self-checkout counters at a FairPrice supermarket.

In early 2014, he remembered supermarket outlets having only manned cashier stations.

Mr Johann, who wanted to be known by only his first name, said he was at a loss until facilitators from Project ReConnect showed him how to use the machines.

The project is an initiative by the Industrial and Services Co-operative Society Limited (Iscos), which helps former offenders and their families in their reintegration process.

Simple acts like using a handheld scanner and making cashless payments intimidated Mr Johann.

Referring to new technology, the 45-year-old, who is now a truck driver, said: “I had a fear of using it, so what they showed me was very helpful.”

He is one of over 2,300 former offenders who have joined Project ReConnect since its launch in 2017.

It teaches former inmates, who have been in jail for more than three years, about government initiatives and practical matters, such as using Singpass and navigating the public transport system.

Second Minister for Home Affairs Josephine Teo commended the initiative in a speech during the launch of Iscos’ new community space, Just BrewIN, in Jalan Besar on Sept 26.

She said that through the project, former offenders learn things that people usually take for granted.

For them, seeing a CDC voucher logo at a hawker centre or being asked for their Singpass at the bank can be a disconcerting experience, said Mrs Teo.

She said: “So, something as basic as (learning life skills) makes a meaningful difference to the reintegration journey.”

Two former offenders and a facilitator of Project ReConnect spoke to The Straits Times on Oct 23 at Just BrewIN.

Mr Johann was arrested for trafficking cannabis in January 2014, barely a month after his wedding. His bride did not know he had been peddling drugs. She and his family stood by him.

“When I went to (prison) for the first time, I hoped it was the last. Because I felt I was abandoning my responsibility (as) I left my family outside,” said Mr Johann, whose wife is a teacher. The couple have no children.

He signed up for Project ReConnect after seeing a poster in one of the prison’s day rooms.

During a one-day programme after his release, Mr Johann learnt to set up his Singpass account for government services, use the HealthHub app to make polyclinic appointments, and scan QR codes.

The facilitators also took him and other former offenders to the bank to open accounts, and to the Salvation Army to buy affordable clothes.

Mr Annadurai Periyasamy, 53, who joined Project ReConnect in 2023 after a five-year prison stint, said learning to use PayNow was especially helpful for him.

When he first tried using it at a hawker centre after his release, he was slow and held up the queue.

He said: “The (staff) were looking at me. I was scared.”

After much practice, Mr Annadurai, who is now a dishwasher at a hotel, is more confident with electronic payments.

The bachelor had been in and out of jail six times from the age of 21 for offences including drug consumption and armed robbery.

He joined Project ReConnect during his last jail term.

Making friends with fellow ex-offenders through the project encouraged him to keep on the straight and narrow.

Mr Annadurai said: “If I do anything bad, I cannot face them. I feel like they have hope in me.”

One of the project’s facilitators, Mr Murugason Mutthiah, 51, said most participants want to learn how to use smartphones, and some do not even know how to download apps.

Mr Murugason said he empathised with them, as he had served eight years’ corrective training for armed robbery with hurt in 2006.

When he was released in 2014, he did not even know how to top up his MRT card.

Mr Murugason, who is now an assistant programme strategist at Iscos, said: “The guys who are inside, they lack these (skills)... This is where I share with them, because I was also like that.”

The three men keep one another motivated through an Iscos support group of more than 10 former offenders.

Mr Murugason and Mr Johann are also part of a selected group of model ex-offenders in Iscos known as “Titans”, who share their stories in prison and at school outreach programmes.

Mr Murugason, who is married to a part-time security guard and has a 28-year-old son, said: “We’re not perfect. We want to be better. But in order to be better, we need this kind of support.”