The inmates proved that even though they are in prison, they are not witless, as they correctly spelled a number of difficult English words.
Sixty inmates from the Boksburg and Modderbee Correctional Centres, competed in the competition, which was organised by the Ekurhuleni Metro.
Competition categories consisted out of literate, semi–literate and illiterate.
The contestants were each given five selected words to spell per round, and had to finish spelling each word within 30 seconds.
The tough competition left three inmates vying for the top price in each category.
The overall winners for each category won a 32” plasma screen television, and those in second position won a home theatre system, while and third position winners received wristwatches.
One of the overall winners, Pitso Sekgobela, said the final round proved to be quite tough.
“The competition was mentally and physically challenging. Although I spent time preparing for the competition, there were some words that there was no doubt in my mind that I was going to spell wrong, but I didn’t,” said Sekgobela.
MMC for the Ekurhuleni Department of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture, Dora Mlambo, said the competition aims to improve the levels of literacy among the inmates as well as to broaden their intellectual capacity.
“The competition is an exceptional way for the municipality to help equip inmates with a skill that will be useful when they are reintegrated back into the community,” said Mlambo.
