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Tag: Internally displaced persons (IDPs)

  • NSCDC arrests five IPDs over alleged theft, vandalism

    NSCDC arrests five IPDs over alleged theft, vandalism

    The Nigeria Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Borno on Wednesday arrested five Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) for allegedly vandalising and stealing camp structures.

    The state NSCDC Commandant, Mr Ibrahim Abdullahi, who made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Maiduguri, said the suspects were arrested in Bakassi camp.

    According to him, items recovered from the suspects include windows, blends, noggin roofs, pipes and rubbers, among others.

    “The IDPs are now causing more havoc by vandalising the hard-earned structure that the government put in place.

    “There are bad eggs among the IDPs who can do anything to get money.

    “Some of them engage in prostitution and sexual abuses while some are into illicit hard drug use.

    “The Command warned the culprits to desist from such crimes or face the full wrath of the law,” he said.

  • Buhari vows to deal with anti-corruption detractors

    Buhari vows to deal with anti-corruption detractors

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday night declared that those planning to deter his administration from fighting corruption in the country will face the consequences.

    He spoke at the Presidential Villa during the breaking of fast with some Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Taxi drivers, hair dressers, motorcycle riders, barbers, transport workers, butchers, tailors, and junior staff of the campaign office of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    He said: “Whoever deters us from fighting corruption will suffer the consequences.”

    The President said that it was unfortunate that some members of the elite were self-centred and only cared for themselves as very little was on ground to show for the huge income got from sales of oil in the 16 years of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rule.

    Noting that they mismanaged what accrued to the country, he said that the past administrations were not able to fix power, rail, and no drinking water for the populace among other problems.

    He told the group that his administration was conscious of their needs and desire but that the government met very poor conditions on ground.

    The prices of oil in the international market, he noted, fell from above $100 to $30 per barrel, which has adversely affected the economy.

    The President took time to personally serve some of the physically-challanged Nigerians the type of food they wanted to eat during the dinner.

    Delivering the votes of thanks, a disabled, Musbahu Lawal Didi commended the President for having the interest of disabled persons at heart.

    He also urged the President to set up a Commission for the disabled so that their interest can be further taken care of.

    Muslim and Christian prayers were offered by two IDPs including Musa Abdullahi from Gwoza, Borno State and Joseph Jauro from Adamawa State.

    Present at the dinner included the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir David Lawal.

    The Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate represented Senate President Buk

  • Displaced persons can live anywhere in Nigeria – UNHCR

    Ms Brigitte Mukanga-Eno, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)’s Deputy Representative on Protection, on Monday said that Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) had the right to live anywhere in Nigeria.

    Mukanga-Eno told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that since the situation in the North East had forced them from their communities, they could move to safer communities.

    ‘’The situation in the North East due to activities of Boko Haram has resulted in about 2.2 million Internally Displaced Nigerians.

    ‘’We need to know that these internally displaced persons are in vulnerable situation and do need support to survive.

    ‘’So, these internally displaced persons have the right to live in any part of Nigeria, because they are also Nigerians.

    ‘’We need to know that these IDPs are also citizens of Nigeria, and have the right to move to and settle wherever in Nigeria they wish to settle,’’ she said.

    The UNHCR official said that about 15,000 displaced persons had relocated from camps in the North-East to Abuja, while some others had moved to the South-West for survival.

    She said that many of the IDPs were already leaving their camps voluntarily, in search of means of livelihood and support, from their friends and family members.

    Mukanga-Eno, who added that most of the IDPs that were still in the camps because they had no means of livelihood outside the camps, said they urgently needed more support.

    She said that UNHCR and other UN agencies were working with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), National Commission for Refugees, and the National Human Rights Commission, in providing the IDPs with support.

  • Polio: Gombe to immunise .64 million children

    Polio: Gombe to immunise .64 million children

    643,294 within age 0 – 5 have been earmarked for immunization under the present Polio Outbreak Response Immunization (PORI) in the state, Gombe State Primary Health Care Development Agency (GSPHCDA) has said.

    Maam Salish Mohammed Malami, the Higher Education Officer of the state Ministry of Health said the target figure was under the second phase of the exercise following outbreak at Biu, a neighbouring town in Borno state.

    He said the situation made Go.be state a considering the closeness and influx of internally displaced persons (IDPs) from those states hence decision Gombe office of World Health Organisation (WHO) and GSPHCDA decided to conduct three consecutive rounds of vaccination in areas prone to outbreaks.

    He said the exercise as a result was taking place in the six local government areas bordering Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states.

    Malami said the exercise recorded over 75 per cent across the six local governments within the first two days with each of them recording 98 per cent successs.

    He explained that the first round of the vaccination exercise was conducted from May 9 to 12, 2016 with not leas than 647,000 children immunized.

  • Boko Haram: UN cautions FG against returning IDPs to communities

    Boko Haram: UN cautions FG against returning IDPs to communities

     

    The United Nations yesterday advised the Federal and State Governments to consider the safety of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) caused by the Boko Haram sect and avoid returning them to their communities.

    This is even as Federal and State governments from the Northwest geo-political zones has given adequate assurance of their safety.

    Speaking at the three-day Regional Protection Dialogue on the Lake Chad Basin, the Regional Representative for West Africa for the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), Liz Kpam Ahua, maintained that even though Boko Haram may not be occupying any local government, fresh spontaneous attacks and unexplored (IEDs) from the Islamic extremists group still pose serious threats to the returnees.

    The Regional Coordinator of the Central Africa Republic and Nigeria Situations further said that: “I have the honor on behalf of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees as well as the agencies that are here assembled from various countries within and outside of the region to express our sincere thanks to the government of the federal republic of Nigeria for hosting and making this event possible.

    “Permit also to join my voice to the ministry of Interior to welcome delegates drawn from headquarters and various councils of operations to Nigeria for this very important function. The Regional Protection Dialogue on the Lake Chad Basin within the context of the High Commissioners’ work for the protection of refugees, assistance to IDPs and other persons of concern is the first of its kind in this region, coming at a very critical time.

    “The Lake Chad Basin today faces a fundamental protection crisis in Nigeria and across the neighboring states. The Boko Haram insurgency and the spill over in Cameroon, Niger and Chad has led the loss of thousands of lives and massive displacement of over 2.7 million people in the region and affected the lives over 20 million persons in the countries.

    “Even as at today, it is feared that another 50,000 persons have been dislocated from their homes in a town in Niger following an attack that took place on that town on Friday June 3. The numbers in Niger will certainly swell to 180,000 IDPs while Cameroon and Chad are reported to be hosting over 160,000 and 54,000 IDPs respectively.

    “It is important to note that around 60 per cent of the affected population is children and we insist on that. Among these affected children we have 20,000 unaccompanied. Many of them are living in areas where the humanitarian and civilian government actors have limited access to help them because of insecurity.

    In Nigeria alone, 3.5 million IDPs and host communities live in areas of Borno and Yobe states that are still largely inaccessible to humanitarian actors. We take note and rejoice on the successes achieved by the military operations that have brought back a number of areas in the northeastern Nigeria occupied by Boko Haram under government control as well as the capacity of the insurgence to engage militarily.

    “However, these have not fully degraded the capacity for the harassment, the maiming and killing of the defenseless civilians. Consequently, conditions of live in the northeast are not yet fully conducive for the return of Nigerian refugees and IDPs particularly in Borno State.

    “We note that there are returns that are taking place even as we talk today, but I will simply would want to underscore that the conditions are not fully ripe yet because we still have persistent threats from Boko Haram, presence of mines, unexploded Improvised devices as well as absence of some basic services. All of these put acute humanitarian and protection risks for the populations affected. We have visited these areas and we know precisely of what we are saying,” she added.

    The permanent secretary for the Ministry of Interior, Mr. Bassey Okon Ekpanyung, reiterated that the federal government has deplored several police and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps personnel to the reclaimed communities.

    “The Ministry of Interior working in close collaboration with relevant institutions is currently in the process of re-establishing civil authority in the liberated areas to free more military personnel to engage the insurgent group. The Nigeria police and NSCDC already have significant presence in the affected towns, while the other agencies will follow suit,” he noted.

     

  • Insurgency: NGO empowers 1,000 Borno families

    Over 1000 families and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the northeast part of the country have benefited from the philanthropic gesture of a Non-Governmental Organization, Peace Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Initiative (PRRI)

    The gesture, according to the Executive Secretary of the group, Dr Sam Ode, is targeted at providing a source of livelihood for the returning families whose communities have been ravaged by the Boko Haram insurgency.

    He revealed that the group visited Biu Local Govt and gave raw cash support of N10m and food stuffs worth over N10m. Other communities also visited include, Buratai, Sabon Gari, Kwajafa, Shaffa, Biu IDP camps were assistance were given to some corporative societies.

    He added that the organisation has resolved to give improved seedlings procured from IITA, Ibadan to help the farmers boost their yields in the coming years.

    Ode said agriculture is key to the development of any nation and it remains the first line of any action plan to deliver people from economic hardships.

    He said PRRI is keen to see that the returning families are empowered.

    According to him, the PRRI team is moving to Yobe and Adamawa State where the teams have identified some villages and the inhabitants have fully returned home as a result of military operations which have restored normalcy to the area.

    The Executive Secretary of the organization while briefing news men in his office in Abuja said it was quite challenging as no government or individual can completely rebuild what was destroyed by the insurgents but a through the concerted efforts of all stakeholders including the once displaced persons.

    While recalling their experience during the tour and distribution of farming materials, he said some communities have not received a grain of rice or corn from any government or organization which is very pathetic and added that while waiting for the Federal Government to reach out to the IDPs, well spirited individuals must be encouraged to support the IDPs particularly those who have returned to their communities with food, money and farming facilities to help them totally recover.

    Ode who was full of praises for President Muhammadu Buhari and the military, informed newsmen that the level of devastation suffered in the north east before military interventions to reclaim those lost territories cannot be quantified in material terms and commended the Nigerian military for restoring law and order to these communities.

    The PRRI, led by the Executive Secretary, Ode said it has now given over 40 million naira as part of its philanthropic gesture to the various communities it has visited in Borno State.

     

     

  • Buhari commends Biya for hosting 56,000 Nigerian IDPs

    Buhari commends Biya for hosting 56,000 Nigerian IDPs

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday night commended the people and government of Republic of Cameroon for hosting over 56,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) from Nigeria since July 2014.

    They were displaced due to the onslaught of the insurgents, Boko Haram.

    Buhari made the commendation at dinner and cultural night organized in honour of the visiting President of Cameroon, Mr Paul Biya and his wife, Chantal Biya at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    While expressing appreciation to the United Nations and other international donor agencies for their assistances to the IDPs across the country, Buhari also condoled with the families of those that lost their loved ones as a result of the murderous activities of the Boko Haram insurgents.

    He said: “Our special condolences go to families of our fallen heroes who had sacrificed their lives to safe guard our territorial integrity and provide security of lives and property of our people

    “Permit me to use this occasion of your Excellency’s visit to Nigeria to once again extend my personal gratitude and that of the Federal Government for your country’s hosting of over 65,000 Nigerian refugees since July 2014.

    “We also appreciate the assistance of the United Nations System, International donors, local and international non-governmental organisations and the ordinary Cameroonian families who share their meager provisions with the refugees in the spirit of African brotherhood. We thank them all.” he added

    He said that a comprehensive rehabilitation and resettlement programme for the IDPs are being worked out by the Federal Government in collaboration with some international organizations, noting that data of the IDPs are being collated for smooth implementation of the scheme.

    The President also expressed satisfaction with the successes being recorded in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency by the Nigerian military in collaboration with the Multinational Joint Task Force against Boko Haram.

    He specifically commended the Cameroonian security agencies who recently participated in a joint military onslaught against the terrorist sect along the border areas of the Lake Chad.

    According to him, the battle against the terrorist group would soon be over as efforts had been intensified by various security agencies across member countries of the multinational joint task force.

    Nigeria and Cameroon, he said, would continue to maintain the path of dialogue and peace in addressing possible incident of social conflict or misunderstanding among the citizens of both countries.

    He also assured that Nigeria would continue to partner with Cameroon in growing the economies as well as to ensure the safety of lives, land and maritime borders of the both countries.

    In his remarks, President Biya, who spoke in French, reiterated the determination of his country to end the menace of the Boko Haram insurgency.

    He also commended the efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari in the fight against the activities of the terrorist group within and beyond Nigeria.

    He called for joint agricultural programmes between Nigeria and Cameroon along their border communities to address the challenges of youth unemployment in their respective countries.

    Among dignitaries that attended the dinner included Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, Senate President Bukola Saraki; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara.

    Others are Chief Justice of the Federation, Mahmud Muktar and top private sector and government functionaries.

  • Boko Haram: Presidency denies using UK’s aid to prosecute opponents

    Boko Haram: Presidency denies using UK’s aid to prosecute opponents

    The Presidency on Wednesday denied the allegations raised by one Con Coughlin in the April 12 edition of The Telegraph (London) paper.

    The article said that Nigeria is using the United Kingdom (UK) aid to persecute president’s political foes rather than to fight Boko Haram.

    Coughlin also wrote that “American officials are also angry that $2.1 billion of aid given to the Nigerian military to tackle Boko Haram has not been properly accounted for.”

    He also accused President Buhari’s government of attempting to cover-up the abductions of 400 women and children “abducted last year by militants from the Nigerian town of Damasak.”

    A statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, however said that the allegations were false.

    He said: “Our attention has been drawn to a piece published on April 12, 2016, in The Telegraph (London) paper, by one Con Coughlin (identified as ‘Defence Editor’), and titled, ‘Nigeria using UK aid to persecute president’s political foes rather to fight Boko Haram.’

    “The piece is not only full of factual inaccuracies, it also betrays a shocking ignorance of Nigeria and the country’s ongoing war against terrorism.

    “Mr Coughlin’s editorial tactic is to quote unnamed “senior officials” and “Western diplomats” and “Western officials” and “political opponents” making fact-free and unfounded statements. It also appears that he sought out only those opinions which suited and reinforced his disgracefully false headline.

    “Nowhere in the piece is there anything that suggests he attempted to contact the Nigerian government for its own side of the story.

    On Coughlin’s remark on the $2.1 billion, Garba Shehu said: “It does not occur to him that the $2.1 billion he refers to was budgeted for and wholly spent by the government that President Buhari and his party defeated in the March 2015 presidential elections, and that one of President Buhari’s priorities has been investigating the misuse of those funds.

    “It also does not appear to occur to Mr. Coughlin that the “political opponents” he is falsely accusing President Buhari of “targeting” and “persecuting” are actually on trial on account of how they spent the $2.1 billion in question.

    “Mr. Coughlin is equally unaware of the fact that the investigating panel set up by Mr. Buhari to probe the $2.1 billion recently published a preliminary report that confirmed that much of that money was indeed looted or mis-spent by the accused persons, and that the government has started to recover the funds.” He added

    He said that Coughlin’s accusation of President Buhari’s government attempting to cover-up the abductions of 400 women and children “abducted last year by militants from the Nigerian town of Damasak” was absolutely untrue.

    He said: “The Damasak abductions he’s referring to, which were recently widely reported, took place, not “last year” as he says, but in late 2014, well before Mr. Buhari was elected President of Nigeria. (And, by the way, President Buhari came to power on May 29, 2015, not July, as Coughlin reports).”

    “A simple search by Mr. Coughlin of his paper’s archives would have revealed these facts. A simple fact-check by his copy-editors would have spared the Telegraph the embarrassment of publishing this drivel.”

    He also noted that there were several other inaccuracies and baseless statements in the piece.

    “But Mr. Coughlin is too enamoured of his anonymous sources to realize they might be misleading him, or be as ignorant about the situation as he is.

    “The suggestion that Boko Haram is going “from strength to strength” is an eminently laughable one; not even Nigeria’s opposition party would make such an absurd claim.

    As an indication of success against the insurgents, he said that schools in Borno State, shut for more than one year under the previous government have reopened since President Buhari took office.

    “The same applies to the airport in Maiduguri, shut down in December 2013 after a devastating Boko Haram attack on the nearby Air Force Base.

    “Thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) have now started returning home. Last Sunday, El-Kanemi Warriors Football Club played its first game in its home base of Maiduguri in more than two seasons. Until now they had been forced to play home games outside the region, on account of security concerns.

    “There are several more examples of how the people of the region are finally getting a chance to rebuild their lives, as the Nigerian Armed Forces and a Multinational Joint Task Force continue their work of routing the terrorists.

    “Mr. Coughlin not only sounds like a spokesperson for the very people whose corruption and mismanagement allowed Boko Haram to bring Nigeria to its knees – and whose disastrous legacy President Buhari has spent the last one year redeeming Nigeria from – he is also guilty of failing to observe the most basic rules of responsible journalism.

    “Mr Coughlin needs a refresher course on responsible journalism as much as he needs a crash course on Nigeria. Until he submits himself to these, we’re afraid he will continue to embarrass not only himself, but also the revered British media institution that is the Telegraph.” He stated

  • Why IDPs can’t return home yet, by minister

    Why IDPs can’t return home yet, by minister

    Internally displaced persons (IDPs) cannot return home yet because it is not yet safe, Interior Minister Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau (rtd) said yesterday.

    He said although most towns have been recaptured from insurgents in the Northeast, security threats still remained.

    The government, he said, is working hard to ensure that the places devastated by the Boko Haram insurgents are made safer for people to return.

    Dambazau, represented by a Director in the Ministry, Noah Auta, spoke in Lagos at a media roundtable with the theme: Developing effective police framework to address the situation of victims of Boko Haram in Nigeria.

    It was organised by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), in collaboration with the Ford Foundation.

    “No IDPs has been authorised to go back home. Although towns have been liberated by the military, some places still have landmines. The government is still fashioning out how to deal with security issues in these areas,” he said.

    Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode advocated the formulation of a more effective policy to rehabilitate victims of terrorism and IDPs.

    Ambode said as the military makes steady progress in liberating territories under the Boko Haram stronghold, the task of rebuilding the communities and reintegrating the victims requires a well thought-out policy framework.

    The governor, represented by a Director in the Ministry of Special Duties, Mrs Bisi Shonibare, said reintegrating victims of terror, especially children, women and the elderly, will require a systematic process to be implemented in phases.

    “It is important that we evolve a well thought-out policy framework that will guide this process. This will guarantee a process that is well coordinated and goal driven.

    “The objective will be to restore hope to the victims and avoid acts of commission or omission that could result in more complex crisis situations in the near future,” he said.

    A former Minister of Education Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, who championed the #BringBackOurGirls campaign, said a central clearing house on information regarding the terror war should be set up to prevent duplication of efforts and to coordinate inter-governmental activities on the war, possibly in the Vice-President’s office.

    Represented by Ademola Williams, Ezekwesili, a former World Bank Vice President, regretted that on the second anniversary of the Chibok School Girls kidnap, they were yet to be found.

    “People must speak up and hold government accountable. Citizens must protect each other. And we need a leadership that really cares,” she said.

    Activist-lawyer Femi Falana (SAN), represented by Olanrewaju Suraju, said corruption contributed to the inability to defeat Boko Haram quicker.

    He said had the past administrations tackled the problem head on, without mixing it with politics and religion and allowing corruption to undermine it, the war would have long been won.

    “The past government was not interest in tackling the issue but used it for political gains,” he alleged.

    A former Chief Judge of Lagos, Justice Ayotunde Phillips, who chaired the event, said ridding the country of terrorism requires every citizens’ support, adding that is not a fight to be left to government alone.