The House of Representatives has
mandated the Committee on Internally Displaced Persons to liaise with the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons to facilitate the immediate release of the sum of Ten Billion Naira (N10b) approved for rebuilding the Communities and infrastructure affected by the Herders-Farmers conflicts to ensure prompt rehabilitation and reintegration of the traumatized victims in Benue State.
The House urged the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons to liaise with the Benue State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), to ensure the disengagement and resettlement of internally displaced persons in the camps across the State.
It further mandated the Committee on Defense to interact with the appropriate Security authorities to deploy enough troops to the affected communities to strengthen security of lives and property for full disengagement from the IDPs Camps.
These resolutions were taken on Thursday during plenary sequel to the adoption of a motion on: “Resettlement of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) from the Various Camps in Benue State sponsored by Benjamin Mzondu (PDP, Benue).
Mzondu while presenting the motion said the House noted that the Herder-Farmer crisis in Nigeria, particularly in Benue State, lead to internal displacement of thousands of people currently housed in the various IDP Camps across the State;
He stated that the House was: “aware that the crisis has gained notoriety that the Global Terrorism Index reported that about 8,000 people were killed between 2010 to 2013, and about 1,229 killed in 2014 with most fatalities occurring in the Benue Valley (North central states) particularly in Benue State.
“Cognizant that about 483,699 persons have been displaced in Benue State due to the ravaging Herders-Farmers conflict, leading to the establishment of eight IDP Camps in Guma, Makurdi, Agatu, Logo, Buruku, Okpokwu, Gwer West and Kwande Local Government Areas of the State.
“Also aware that the Camp in Kwande houses not only displaced persons from Benue and neighboring States, but also from the Republic of Cameroun.
“Worried by the vulnerability of children and women frequently exploited at the Camps, leading to sexual perversion, harassment and other anti-social behaviours.
“Further worried that the situation in Benue State has resulted in a human crisis of about 102,000 children of school age being out of school due to lack of access to schools in the Camps.
“Disturbed that the Camps are characterized by poor hygiene resulting in outbreak of diseases such as cholera and other communicable diseases that put the lives of 34,986 displaced persons at risk and complicating life in the camps.
“Regrets that the pathetic condition of the IDP Camps in Benue State came to the fore during a visit of the Vice President to the State, during one of the crisis in 2018 wherein he announced the Federal Government’s approval of Ten Billion Naira (N10, 000,000) for rebuilding of the areas affected by the crisis, rehabilitation, resettlement and reintegration of the traumatized victims into their ancestral communities.
“Further regret that over a year after the visit of the Vice President, the approved sum has not been released, thereby further compounding the plight of the displaced persons in the camps who are now dying of hunger as manifested in the recent deaths of eight (8) persons in the Mbawa IDPs Camp in Guma Local Government of Benue State.
“Concerned that if urgent steps are not taken to rebuild the destroyed infrastructure such as schools hospitals and markets amongst others, to resettle the displaced and traumatized persons, a situation of state of neglect and helplessness will be created, thereby defeating the primary purpose of government as enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended)”.
The motion as an infrastructure and disaster related one, it was voted on, adopted and referred to relevant Committees of the House.
