Revealed: Reasons Why Orphanages Lack Children as CEO Holyland Homes Solicits Abia Govt Support

From Henrietta Ashikodi, Umuahia.

The Founder, Holyland Homes, Owerrinta, Abia State, Dr. Gideon Nwandire, has attributed the lack of children in Orphanages to the lucrative business of selling babies.

Nwandire, who disclosed this to our reporter in Owerrinta, said people no longer abandon children on the streets, which used to be one of the major ways orphanages received children.

According to him, most orphanages get children by taking in babies abandoned as a result of unwanted pregnancies.

He however lamented that these days, young mothers now prefer to sell their babies for money, an act, he said, is becoming rampant among young girls, especially those in higher institutions.

“The reason we don’t have children now is because girls, when they get pregnant, sell their babies as we heard. It has become a business for them,” he said.

He further revealed that some children come to the Homes because their parents abandon them without a trace.

Some are picked up by security personnel and brought to the Homes, while others still have parents who are unable to care for them.

In such cases, the Holyland Homes takes responsibility for training the children.

He revealed that his family established and registered the Holy Land Homes because he and his wife could not bear the sight of abandoned children, adding that they train them up to the University level.

Dr. Nwandire said that they initially used their personal salaries and his father’s inheritance to cater for the children until kind-hearted individuals and mothers began to offer assistance.

He hinted that the Homes operate strict adoption rules, which involve going through the Ministry of Women Affairs and Youths Development for proper documentation.

He emphasised that the strict regulations are necessary to prevent children from falling into the hands of wrong individuals who may exploit them.

He noted that many people are willing to adopt, but currently, there are not enough children available for adoption because fewer children are being abandoned and some are overgrown for such arrangements.

The Chief Executive Officer of Holyland Homes also stated that, driven by their passion to educate the children, they established nursery, primary, and now secondary schools.

He noted that parents appreciate the way the children are nurtured and the fear of God instilled in them, which has encouraged some to enrol their children in the school, although many cannot afford the fees.