Hope returns to ‘village of zombies’

When the news went around that some 500 young women in a Malindi village at the Kenyan Coast were languishing in despair because their male friends had turned into zombies from drug abuse, it may have sounded surreal.

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But your opinion could change after speaking candidly with former drug users and those struggling to kick the habit. Most of them have been comforted by the knowledge that at least they will be leading normal lives, thanks to a rehabilitation programme they chose to follow after nearly ruining their lives.

One person, who did not want to be named, said he was involved in 19 incidents of robbery with violence. And for almost seven years since he started rehabilitation and kicked the habit, he can only count himself lucky because, on several occasions, he stared death in the face.

“I was in and out of the Kamiti prison, and my only prayer is that I will not be hooked onto drugs again, because that is hell on earth,” he recalled. “All the risks in my life came because I just wanted money to buy drugs because, without it, my life was incomplete.”

Outskirts of Malindi

We met him at the Omar Rehabilitation Project on the outskirts of Malindi where he is spending most of his time helping other former drug users return to normal life. In doing that, he is also developing a strong sense of resilience to the dangerous lifestyle outside.

His story mirrors that of other people who volunteered to give their side of the story. A look at them now reveals a major transformation from the past when their only hope of living hinged on a sniff or injection of dope.

Ludovic Tengia wanted to be a professional architect like his father. He went to school to pursue this ambition. but soon he realised he could not achieve this due to drug addiction and crime.

“I started to take bhang at an early age,” he said. “When I joined secondary school, I was already an addict.” The Omar Rehabilitation Centre Project was named after the first known addict, Omar Mpate of Watamu, who has since died. It was started in 1995 at Watamu after Mr Mpate died from an overdose.