Akwa Ibom Assembly Passes Mental Health Bill

The Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly has passed a bill establishing a Mental Health Services Department to regulate and strengthen mental healthcare delivery across the state.

NaijaChoice News reports that the legislation, which replaces the outdated Lunacy Law of 1916, sailed through third reading on Tuesday during plenary at the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs Chamber, Government House, Uyo.

House Committee Chairman on Health, Hon. Moses Essien, presented the committee’s report after detailed scrutiny that followed the bill’s second reading. A public hearing on March 23 drew memoranda from health sector stakeholders who backed the reform.

Essien described the new law as a coordinated framework that will protect the rights of persons with intellectual, psychosocial and cognitive disabilities.

He said it will improve access to quality mental healthcare, rehabilitation services and community-based treatment while empowering the Commissioner for Health to issue necessary regulations, including guidelines on consent for treatment.

After clause-by-clause debate, the House dissolved into Committee of the Whole before adopting the report. The bill passed third reading following a motion by Hon. Jerry Otu, seconded by Prince Aniefiok Attah.

Speaker Rt. Hon. Udeme Otong announced the passage and directed Clerk of the House, Mrs Nsiakak Orok, to transmit the resolution to Governor Umo Eno for assent.

Essien called the development a turning point for mental healthcare in Akwa Ibom.

“The new law is expected to usher in a more humane, structured, and rights-based approach to mental healthcare delivery in Akwa Ibom State,” he said.

The move comes as Nigeria shifts away from the colonial-era Lunacy Ordinance of 1916, which shaped the 1958 Lunacy Act that many states still relied on until the National Mental Health Act of 2023. In Akwa Ibom, where only one major psychiatric facility exists amid rising cases linked to economic stress, substance abuse and family pressures, the bill addresses long-standing gaps.

Mental health experts and civil society groups had pushed for the department during the public hearing, citing persistent stigma that drives many residents to prayer houses and traditional healers instead of professional care.

The legislation aligns with national efforts to promote community-based services and reduce institutionalisation of patients.

Mental health remains a state of well-being that enables individuals to cope with life’s stresses, realise their abilities, work productively and contribute to their community. It covers emotional, psychological and social dimensions that shape how people think, feel and behave.

With the governor’s expected assent, Akwa Ibom will join states modernising mental health governance, offering hope for better support for thousands of residents who have struggled in silence for decades.