WRITTEN BY ONYEKA EBENEBE
On the 12th of September, 2018, Anambra State witnessed a historic landmark event, an outcome of an impact making intervention of a visionary, purposeful and dynamic Leader,

Chief Dr. Willie Maduaburochukwu Obiano. That was the day, ten former inmates of the Nteje Remand Home for the mentally challenged, were formally re-integrated with their family members.
The process of transforming the centre into Anambra State Home for the mentally challenged started with a directive from Governor Willie Obiano that the Ministry of Women Affairs & Social Development should rid the streets of mentally challenged persons and send them for rehabilitation.
In line with that directive, the Ministry of Women Affairs & Social Development conducted the first raid on mentally challenged persons across the streets of the state in June, 2014.
Those picked up were sent to Nawfia psychiatric hospital, but due to non availability of space at the Nawfia hospital and the need to find a permanent structure for envisaged large number of mentally challenged persons to be picked up, the Ministry decided to transfer mentally challenged persons from Nawfia psychiatric hospital to the unoccupied sections of the Nteje rehabilitation centre. This centre already had students learning various skills.
Owing to the security risks involved in having both the students with special needs and mentally sick person in the same facility, Governor Obiano took the bold step of transferring the then few students of the rehabilitation centre from Nteje to Aguleri welfare centre and converting the Nteje centre as a pilot home for the mentally challenged because of the location of the centre. With a concretized partnership arrangement the centre has many psychiatric consultants who work round the clock to ensure that sanity is restored in the lives of mentally challenged individuals who loiters the streets of Anambra State.
The Nteje rehabilitation is strategically positioned to help in the achievement of a socially stable business friendly environment which is a critical component of the mission of this present Administration.
Since the formal opening of the centre, the centre has witnessed a geometric increase in the number of inmates as a result of constant raid of mentally challenged persons. This has posed a serious threat to the required financial resources needed to effectively manage the centre in line with best practices. The good news however, is that the centre has received funding from the State Government and especially the wife of the Governor, Chief Mrs. Ebelechukwu Obiano (Osodieme) who have supported the home through her pet project, the Caring Family Enhancement Initiative (CAFÉ).
CAFÉ has helped in the feeding and clothing of the inmates as well as in the general maintenance of the facility. Good spirited individuals and organizations have also contributed to the survival of the centre.
The result of this novel intervention will see that as many times as possible that Anambra State will be reunifying and reintegrating more than ten of her once mentally challenged sons and daughters with their families and the society at large.
This feat has been achieved through strategic planning and uncommon commitment to inclusiveness in Governance of the Willie Maduaburochukwu Obiano’s purposeful leadership and the dedicated hardworking Commissioner for Women & Children Affairs, Lady Ndidi Mezue.
Lady Ndidi Mezue has demonstrated a great passion in the more than 15 raids that have been carried out since her assumption of office. The Commissioner and her team have constantly ensured that sanity is restored to the streets of Anambra and that the State is not just the safest state in Nigeria but her streets are devoid of mentally challenged persons.

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