- Laudable gesture from South Africa but…
That the Federal Government has been lax in managing the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) is not in doubt. Reports emanating from a number of the camps have been that of misery, squalor and the most abject of human conditions.
In shelters in Abuja and other parts of the north, basic amenities like kitchen, water, electricity, clinics and classroom blocks are almost non-existent. Some camps have been shown to be derelict and unfit for human habitation while food supply and security have posed serious challenges both for managers and inmates.
We have had cause to raise some of these points here a number of times, calling for a more articulate and professional handling of the IDPs problem that has beset the country since the upsurge of the Boko Haram terror about five years ago. However, as the activities of the terrorists were intensified with more villages sacked early last year, the number of displaced people rose rapidly across the country.
More camps were also hurriedly set up but without the requisite facilities and support services. We were not surprised however by the reports emanating from two camps in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) recently. Two bodies: the South African High Commission working in collaboration with the Nelson Mandela Institute (NMI) were apparently moved to intervene in the IDPs affairs.
As part of the activities to mark the 2015 Nelson Mandela International Day, they had produced and distributed no fewer than 400 identity cards for the IDPs in Area 1 and New Kuchingoro camps of the FCT. Some of the details contained in the identity cards include name and photographs of the displaced persons. Other information include: state of origin, identity card number, signatures and location of the camp.
Apart from procuring identity cards for IDPs, the team led by the South African High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Mnguni Lulu, also presented what they called support Booths which would serve as information-cum-administrative centre for each camp. These are intended to ease the administration of the IDPs camps as well as ensure effective dissemination of information. Essential items like generators and food stuff were presented by the South African team.
The envoy noted that his country would continue to support Nigeria and her efforts to contain the Boko Haram menace. Their visit to the camp, according to him, was to improve the quality of lives of the displaced and to promote the legacy of Mandela. He promised that the embassy and the NMI would replicate the gesture in other camps within the FCT for the overall good of the displaced.
This kind gesture of the South Africans is worthy of commendation and their especial courage to break diplomatic bounds and take needed help to hurting humanity is particularly worthy of note. We hope other countries would emulate this noble gesture and push through official barriers to ferry relief and succour to where they are sorely needed.
On the other hand, we urge the Nigerian authorities, especially the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and all concerned in the affairs of the IDPs to wake up to the enormous task of managing compatriots who are caught in the crossfire of an insurgency. We wonder how the IDPs have been managed all these years without such basic tool as identification. If the ones camped in the FCT are lacking such basic requirement we shudder at the state of the camps in far-flung areas of the country.
Apart from the funds voted for taking care of the IDPs, many kind-hearted Nigerians and international organisations would be willing to lend a hand if called upon and if they can observe a professional and accountable management of the problem.
Lastly, it is common knowledge that no part of the country is still under the control of the insurgents. We therefore urge the handlers of the IDPs to begin to work towards resettling them back to their towns and villages from whence they were displaced. This is the next line of action and it should be done with utmost diligence.
