The Nation Newspaper

Tag: IDPs

  • Buhari to IDPs: We’ll restore your devastated communities

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday assured the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) his administration would restore their devastated communities.

    While congratulating the 2,000 IDPs at the Kuchingoro Camp, Federal Capital Territory, who are preparing to return to their communities in the North East, the President assured Nigerians that his administration would not forget citizens in their time of distress and would continue to work for the betterment and security of the people.

    Speaking through his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, who received the IDPs at the precincts of the Aso Rock Villa, President Buhari thanked the international community and Nigerians, including Aliko Dangote, Gen. T.Y Danjuma and other philanthropists, for their sustained efforts towards the reconstruction and rehabilitation of destroyed communities in the North East.

     

  • Boko Haram IDPs celebrate final return of peace to the North-east

    ….commend Buhari, Buratai’s commitment

    No fewer than 2, 000 persons displaced from north east as result of activities of the Boko Haram insurgents are  finally returning  to their ancestral homes from Abuja and environs where they have been living for years.

    The IDPS, who were hitherto house in Kuchigoro camp and other annexes in the nation’s capital on Friday, stormed the Unity Fountain to thank the President, Muhammadu Buhari and the Nigerian Army for liberating their villages from the grips of the Boko Haram insurgents.

    Speaking on behalf of the former IDP, Mrs Maryam Nuhu, called on the relevant authorities to fish out those who have been sponsoring the Boko Haram sect that had made the country volatile.

    Nuhu also saluted the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai for his tenacity, to make sure IDPs can return home.

    She recall with nostalgia, “For years we were displaced persons in our own country, at the Kuchigoro IDPs camp and other annexes in Abuja and neighboring states. The measure of comfort and care provided us almost made us to resign to calling these camps home. But even if we had been quartered in the most glamourous of the hotels in the nation’s capital, the affinity for our ancestral lands would have still pulled us to return home as it did now.

    “The only thing that would have kept us away from our home is the terror attacks of Boko Haram that uprooted us in the first place. However, Boko Haram has become history as far as we are concerned. Whatever the terror group is capable of right now is no different from the kind of criminality that can occur on the streets of any of the world’s many towns and cities.

    “Our towns and villages have been cleared of these terrorists. We can now confidently return home to pick up our lives from the points where we will meet them. Of course the scars of our losses are there but they are scars that will remind us of the healing that sincere leadership can bring as opposed to the dark side of humanity that Boko Haram its backers want us to know.

    “Mr. President, thanks you for making it possible  for us to be returning home. Our sad story took a turn for the better because of the Caliber  of military leaders you appointed.
    We thank the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai for his tenacity. He went the extra mile to ensure IDPs can return home. From him we have the assurance that we will be protected when we get home.

    “It is proper that we also appreciate the troops. Their sacrifices, in many instances the supreme price, make it possible for us to be returning home today. We say thank you.
    “We want to make meaningful contributions to the economy; we want the Northeast to again be known as a hub for commerce so we need all the incentives we can get to make this happen.

    “We therefore call on Mr. President to intensify efforts towards providing whatever infrastructures are still lacking in our places. Mr President should encourage his appointees to support IDPs to return home to start farming, agro-processing, and small scale ventures that will guarantee everyone a quick win.

    “We believe that returning home is the right thing to do and that now is the best time to do so. We do not wish for or ancestral lands to become wilderness neither do we want the left over of Boko Haram fighters to get free spaces from where to plot further evil. When our towns and villages are occupied by us we can police them through community effort. But we will require that the Nigeria Police Force maintain a robust presence to complement what the Nigerian Army is already doing.

    “In terms of justice, for us it goes beyond the terrorists that have been killer in military operations or jailed after trial. Justice should extend to finding out those that made it possible for Boko Haram to dispense terror. They live in comfort in many Nigerian cities and other world capitals; they enjoy themselves while they made us suffer. Justice would be letting the world know who these people really are and what they did to turn a portion of Nigeria into hell before President Buhari, through the Nigerian Army, redeemed us from the brink.”

    The Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and Publicity, Garba Shehu who received the IDPs at the gate said steps are being taken to rescue the country from terrorist using the Nigerian Army.

    He said the President is with all Nigerians that have been displaced from their homes.

    “There is no day that he doesnt express concern about the plights of the IDPs and he is doing everything possible to relocate them all back to their various communities.

    “It is a slow process but with international support, it shall be done, efforts are on to provide infrastructures to the North East to relocate all displaced Nigerians”he said

  • Over 2,000 IDPs returned home – Army

    The Nigerian Army said on Tuesday that at least 2, 043 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) living in Bakassi Camp have started moving to their homes in Guzamala local government area of Borno State.

    It said the IDPs comprising 378 households were the first batch of people who willingly expressed desire to return to their communities and resume farming, fishing and other social cultural activities.

    According to a statement issued by the spokesman, Operation Lafiya Dole, Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, the resettlement exercise was flagged on in Maiduguri, the state capital.

    He said modalities for return of the IDPs to their homes were worked out by the army, Borno State Government and Guzamala LGA.

    Nwachukwu said: “At the flag-off, the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj.-Gen. Rogers Nicholas, stated that the earnest desire of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, was to ensure that IDPs who are willing, return home to begin a normal life.

    “He noted that the modalities for the IDPs return to their homes were jointly worked out by the Theatre Command, the Borno State Government and the Guzamala Local Government Authorities. Gen. Nicholas added that the military has reinforced security in the locality and that the traditional farm clearing (sharandaji) to declare the farming season open has been earlier conducted in Gudumbali.

    “He assured the returnee IDPs of adequate protection while they resettle, adding that Operation Last Hold has been inaugurated in the theatre to cover the locality and other communities.

    “The Theatre Commander also urged well- meaning Nigerians and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to support returnee IDPs with farming implements and other relief materials to enable them settle back quickly into their respective communities.”

     

  • Dangote builds N2b housing estate for IDPs

    THE Aliko Dangote Foundation has inaugurated the Dangote village built for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

    The gesture has been  described as another massive philanthropic gesture coming barley two weeks after the foundation donated 150 cars to the police.

    The Dangote village is a self-sufficient set of 200 housing units worth N2 billion, with school, hospital, irrigation farms and poultry farms among others, to enable the occupants make a living.

    Dangote also gave each of the beneficiary N100,000 to start a new life.

    The foundation’s chairman, Aliko Dangote, said about N7 billion has been donated to support displaced persons affected by the Boko Haram crisis in the Northeast.

    Besides the N100,000 to start a new life, Dangote also pledged that the  Foundation would take care of teachers’ emolument for five years and as well share in the burden of the ongoing educational revolution launched by the Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima.

    Dangote lauded the governor for ably running the state efficiently and paying salaries despite the security challenges.

    A visibly elated Shettima said the intervention was unprecedented by a single company, describing the Aliko Dangote Foundation as the fourth arm of government in the state.

    The governor noted that the Dangote Group is the single largest employer of labour outside government in Nigeria.

    His words: “In every clime and in every dispensation, there are three layers of governments: the executive, the legislature and the judiciary. I dare to add that the fourth layer in Borno State is the Aliko Dangote Foundation. For the past seven years, the Dangote  foundation has been consistent and hearkening to the yearnings and aspirations of people of the state.”

    He said the Dangote Village provided by the foundation, though very massive, it was a small noticeable part compared to what the foundation had done to support humanitarian relief in the troubled region.

    “When Aliko Dangote came in 2016, he quickly pledged N2 billion. We requested that half of the money should be used to supplying building materials, and lo and behold, within the span of two weeks, all the materials were ready,” he added.

    The governor said it was the support from the foundation that enabled most of the displaced and malnourished victims of Boko Haram insurgency to survive.

    According to the governor, it was crucial to acknowledge Dangote’s generosity. He added that as fr he was concerned, Dangote is the world’s biggest philanthropist.

    He revealed that most of the beneficiaries are widows and children.

    “We call it Dangote village because it is a self-sustaining community with their own schools, clinics, mosques and livelihood,” he added.

    He thanked all the donors and added that Borno State is now opened for investors. The state, he added, is more peaceful than Lagos and Abuja.

    Commissioner for Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Prof. Baba Gana Umara said 95 per cent of the beneficiaries were widows, whose husbands were killed by the Boko Haram terrorists.

    Prof. Umara is the chairman of the distribution committee for the new Dangote village.

    He said the criterion for allocating a flat to the beneficiaries is to be a widow and having no fewer than five children.

    Hailing Dangote, he said the reconstruction effort was now on and that the infrastructural deficit was still huge.

    He said the European Union (EU), United Nations (UN) and World Bank had estimated that the infrastructural deficit caused by the insurgency in Borno alone was around $6.9 billion.

    He expressed optimism that with the kind of support from the likes of Aliko Dangote Foundation, the state will bounce back to normal before the year 2020.

    Chairperson of the State Emergency Management Agency Hajiya Ya Bawa Kolo expressed appreciation to the foundation on behalf of the Internally Displaced Persons.

    She assured that only deserving persons are beneficiaries.

    Ten beneficiaries were selected for symbolic presentation of certificates of occupancy.

    Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Aliko Dangote Foundation Zouera  Youssoufou said the foundation would not rest on its oars to support the victims of insurgency.

    Ms Youssoufou said earlier during Ramadan, food items were distributed to the IDPs include rice, sugar, salt, spaghetti, Semolina, wheat meal, maize and millet.

    She said the philanthropic exercise was meant to complement the effort of the state and the Federal governments.

  • Dangote inaugurates 200 houses, school for widows in Borno

    The Aliko Dangote Foundation on Monday inaugurated 200 housing units and a school it constructed for widows among Internally Displaced Persons ( IDPs ) in Borno.

    Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Executive Chairman of the foundation said at the inauguration in Maiduguri that it was in fulfilment of a pledge he made two years ago.

    He disclosed that the foundation had so far expended over N7 billion in providing humanitarian assistance to those displaced by Boko Haram in the Northeast, and would provide N2 billion more.

    Dangote said: “You may recall in the last two years when I first paid a visit to the IDPs camp, I made a pledge of N2 billion on behalf of Dangote foundation.

    “The gesture was designed to support government to key into the reconstruction of houses that were destroyed and vandalised by Boko Haram.

    “It was the decision of the government that the donation should be given in materials and not cash.

    “It is against this backdrop and with consultation between the foundation and the state government that we provided building materials which included cement, aluminium roofing sheet, iron rode, ceiling as well as fabricated door and windows worth N1 billion to the stat government.

    “The 200 housing would provide accommodation to the IDPs in Borno. Each house is self contained built to house a family.

    Read Also: Aliko Dangote’s parting words to daughter

    “The state government had also provided skills acquisition kits to enable them become self reliant and enhance their livelihood.

    “The state government also built a school for the education of the children which was one of the key aspects that we needed to look into.”

    Dangote said that the foundation would release the second batch of N2 billion to continue with the construction of houses for vulnerable people.

    “I want to assure you that we will continue to do more until the IDPs are reintegrated back to the society and are able to resume their normal productive lives,” he said.

    He solicited for more donation by wealthy individuals towards the resettlement of the Boko Haram victims.

    Earlier, Babagana Umara, the Commissioner of Rehabilitation, Reconstruction and Resettlement, disclosed that the building materials provided by Dangote foundation were for the construction of 1,000 housing units for widows.

    Umara said after the conclusion of the first phase of the reconstruction, the government utilised the remaining materials for the rehabilitation of public structures in Bama, Gwoza, Askira Uba and Konduga local government areas.

    “A school with a block of  ten classrooms and library with well-equipped facilities as well as clinic was also built in order to support the livelihood and health needs of the people.”

    The commissioner announced that the beneficiaries would be supported with irrigation kits, poultry facilities and  fish ponds to boost their means of livelihood.

    In his remark, Gov. Kashim Shettima commended the foundation for its humanitarian assistance, adding that Dangote presented the highest individual contribution and intervention to the IDPs.

    He said that in two years ago, the foundation had donated 100 trailer loads of food and nonfood items to Boko Haram victims.

    The governor noted that Zuwaira, Dangote’s daughter had also visited the state more than 20 times in support of the IDPs.

    Hajiya Yabawa Kolo, Chairperson of SEMA, said those that got the houses were among the most vulnerable persons across the 27 local government areas of the state.

    “The beneficiaries cut across all faith, most of them lost their spouses and were left with a lot of children to take care of,” she said.

    One of the beneficiaries, Esther Kachallah, whose husband was killed by Boko Haram insurgents four years ago in Monguno thanked the foundation for providing them with a home.

    “We get support from church where I sweep to make some money to feed the kids, I thank God I now have a house to call my own,” she said.

    NAN

     

  • 2,000 IDPs return home for Eid-el-Fitr

    The Army yesterday said about 2,000 returnee Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) celebrated Eid-el-Fitr at Gudumbali, Guzamala Local Government Area of Borno State, for the first time in six years.

    The town, which is 125 kilometres north of Maiduguri, was deserted following incessant attacks by Boko Haram insurgents.

    A statement the Director of Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Texas Chukwu, said the IDPs returned to their ancestral home following successes recorded in the ongoing Operation Last Hold.

    The statement reads: “Following the achievements recorded by the troops of Operation Lafiya Dole, the Army consolidated the operations with clearance operation which is Sharan Gwona da Sharan Gida and dominance patrols.

    “The returnees, drawn from different IDPs camps, were assured of their safety and the government’s assistance in rebuilding their homes and livelihoods.

    “Building materials are already being stocked for distribution and efforts are intensified to clear and open up more communities in the nine councils of nothern Borno.”

    Chukwu quoted the Commander of Operation Last Hold, Maj.-Gen. Abba Dikko, who welcomed the returnees, as saying the military would not rest until all displaced persons safely return home.

  • OVER 2000 IDPs RETURN HOME TO GUZAMALA LOCAL GOVERNMENT OF BORNO STATE

    Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) of Guzamala extraction living in Bakassi IDP Camp in Maiduguri today Tuesday 19 June 2018 commenced movement to return to their original homeland in Guzamala Local Government Area of Borno state.

    The IDPs numbering about 2,043 individuals, making up 378 households constitute the first batch of IDPs who willingly expressed the desire to return to their communities to resettle and resume their traditional occupation of farming and fishing, as well as other socio-economic activities.

    Speaking during the flag off of the movement at the Bakassi IDP Camp, the Theatre Commander Operation Lafiya Dole, Major General Rogers Nicholas, stated that the earnest desire of the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai has been to ensure that IDPs who are willing, return home to begin a normal life. He noted that the modalities to return the IDPs home was jointly worked out by the Theatre Command, the Borno State Government and the Guzamala Local Authorities. General Nicholas added that the military has reinforced security in the locality and that the traditional farm clearing ( sharandaji) to declare the farming season open has been earlier conducted in Gudumbali. He assured the returnee IDPs of adequate protection while they resettle, adding, that Operation Last Hold has been inaugurated in the theatre to operationally cover the locality and other communities.

    The Theatre Commander also urged well meaning Nigerians and Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) to support returnee IDPs with farming implements and other relief materials to enable them settle back quickly into their respective communities.

    In his remarks, the Speaker Borno State House of Assembly, Right Honourable Abdulkareem Lawn commended the military and other security agencies for creating an enabling security environment for the safe return of the IDPs.

    The Commissioner for Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Resettlement to the Borno State Government, Professor Babagana Umara, stated while addressing the returnee IDPs that their resolve to return home is a welcome development that will fast track their socio-economic well-being. He assured them of the support of the Borno State Government as they return home.

    Other dignitaries who graced the event were the Speaker Borno state House of Assembly, Chairman Guzamala Local Government, Honourable Lawan Umara Zanna, representative of the Commander Operation Last Hold, Brig Gen Victor Offiong, representative of the General Officer Commanding 7 Division, Brig Gen Gbemiga Adeshina, the District Head of Guzamala Alhaji Zanna Arjinoma and Heads of Security Agencies in Borno State.

    Please disseminate this information to the general public through your news medium.

    Thank you for your kind cooperation.

    Colonel Onyema Nwachukwu
    Deputy Director Public Relations
    Theatre Command operation Lafiya Dole

  • FG donates relief materials to IDPs in Edo

    …As Obaseki makes case for Libya returnees

     

    The National Logistics Committee on Distribution of Relief Materials has donated relief items to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) being accommodated in Edo State.

    Assistant Comptroller-General of Customs, Azarema Abdulkadir, disclosed this when he led members of the committee on a courtesy visit to Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki at Government House, Benin City.

    Noting that the donation marks the fifth round of distribution of relief materials to the IDPs in the state, he said the relief materials include; “10,653 bags of 50kg of rice; 33 cartons of 400mg tin of tomato paste; 1,232 cartons of 70mg of tomato paste; 210 pieces of five litre gallons of vegetable oil and 40 pieces of two litre bottles of vegetable oil.”

    Other items are: “5,822 small cartons of Lucozade boost drinks; 993 cartons of Eva soap; 4 cartons of liquid soap; 11 cartons of tablet soap; 329 bales of second-hand clothes and 2,159 pieces of shoes.”

    Read Also:Customs donates 10, 653 bags of rice, other items to Benin IDPs

    Abdulkadir expressed appreciation to state government and people for accommodating persons displaced by the ongoing insurgency in the North East, as the Federal Government continues to make efforts to restore peace in the region.

    “The judicious distribution of the materials by officials in the camp would have tremendous impact on the lives of the IDPs,” he added.

    Governor Godwin Obaseki, who lauded efforts of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government in providing succour to the IDPs, urged the committee to include returnees who are victims of human trafficking in their programme.

    He said, “One of the challenges the state government is dealing with is the resettling and reintegration programme for 3,000 returnees who are victims of human trafficking. We are expecting about 6,000 others. 

    Obaseki assured the committee that the state government will ensure equitable distribution of the relief materials to the IDPs. 

    He urged the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to also ensure that materials donated are properly stored to prevent damage.

     

     

  • Boko Haram: Human rights group blasts international bodies, others for frustrating relocation of IDPs back home

    Coalition of Civil Society Organisations on Human Rights and Conflict Resolution In Nigeria has accused foreign organizations of frustrating the moves to return the Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, back to their country homes.

     

    The group alleged that some international agencies have continued to enrich themselves in the name of rendering aid to victims of the Boko Haram attacks in the north eastern part of the country.

     

    Maxwell Gowon, Executive Director/ National Coordinator, who made this revelation while presenting report after assessment of ongoing military exercise in Borno axis, called on the federal government and the military authorities to immediately unveil a roadmap for returning and reintegrating IDPs into their original communities.

     

    He also opined that stakeholders should convene a forum to audit the roles being played by all organizations with presence in the northeast of Nigeria.

     

    He said, “The decision to focus on these aspects was informed in part by feedback from residents of affected communities who are concerned that full return of peace to their towns and villages is being prevented by factors that stakeholders in Nigeria may not have much control over. The concerns were tempered by the understanding that anything that offers the slightest boost to Boko Haram risks not only reviving the terror organization but would also position the terrorists to fully overrun the country.

     

    “These boosts, sadly, exist in form of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps that have remained operational in the areas years after the communities from where the IDPs were displaced have been fully liberated by troops and are being rehabilitated by the relevant level of government.

     

    “The camps constitute soft targets for Boko Haram’s person borne IEDs and suicide bombers who continue to attempts attacks at the facilities to create the impression of still being deadly. The camps have also been exploited by sympathizers of the terror group as a recruitment ground to replenish the decimated ranks of the terrorists.

     

    “Questionable international organizations like Amnesty International leverage on the existence of these camps as propaganda props. There have been reports that they monetarily induce IDPs to pose as victims of sexual abuse in order to malign soldiers. Diseases and other mishaps that are natural consequences of people being dislocated and confined to restricted areas are easily blamed on the military by an organization like this.

     

    “Those profiting from Boko Haram terrorism continue to use the camps as avenue to steal money through diversion and theft of funds and relief materials. The presence of the IDPs at the camps does not therefore guarantee that intended interventions gets to them.

     

    “The upcoming 2019 General Elections further expose the camps to the risk of becoming political prop with the risk that they could become epicenter of violence since politicians already exploit the vulnerability of the IDPs.

     

    “IDPs are unable to return to lives of active economic engagement and therefore continue to be dependent on aids. This opens them up to being recruited as actors and actresses as recently demonstrated by the fictitious report published by Amnesty International that alleged that they were raped. It turned out in some cases that persons who have been forced into compromising position as a result want have to allege abuse to escape social rejection and get sympathy.

     

     

    “Liberated but unoccupied communities provide safe haven for fleeing Boko Haram terrorists that are able to hide within such communities to plan attacks on soft targets. Failure of inhabitants to return to these towns and villages means the civil police does not allocate resources for covering them.

     

    “Agencies of the United Nations like UNICEF, WHO, IOM and others have not done much to motivate the IPDs to return to their original communities. Staff of these agencies rather continue to encourage the IDPs not to return home. This is an arrangement that favours the staff as they continue to draw allowances when the camps remain open.

     

    “Foreign NGOs are exploiting the IDPs to source funding that do not come to the need but are instead diverted to execute agenda that further undermine the security situation of the entire region so that the IDPs will not be willing to return home. A vicious circle has so been created. Some local NGOs have allied themselves to their foreign counterparts to share from the booty accruable from manipulating the IDPs situation. Most international NGOs and their allies in the north east have now abandoned their core mandates to engage in blackmailing the military to extend their stay in the north east without providing any succor for those affected by violence.

     

     

    “The federal government and the military must immediately unveil a roadmap for returning and reintegrating IDPs into their original communities.

     

    “Stakeholders should convene a forum to audit the roles being played by all organizations with presence in the northeast of Nigeria.”

     

  • Benue Police donate gifts to IDPs

    The Benue State Police Command on Wednesday celebrated the 2018 Children’s Day with the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at their camps within Benue metropolis including Abagena, Dauda, Gbajimba and Ayim.

    The Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni was accompanied by the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Criminal Investigation Department(CIID) , Mr Dominic Effing; Emmanuel Adesina, Assistant Commissioner of Police(ACP) in charge of Operations; ACP Waheed Ayilara (Special Duty), and Counter Terrorism Commander CSP Ademilua Kolawole among others, and were  received by the representative of the Executive Secretary of the State Emergency Management Authority, Mr  Emmanuel Shior.

    The Police Command, apart from the visits to the displaced camps, also shared gift items worth millions of naira to show love and sense of belonging to the IDPs as part of police community relations and social responsibilities.