Reps propose 10 year development plan for Bakassi residents

The House of Representatives’ Committee on Foreign Affairs on Wednesday unveiled plan to initiate a legislative framework for 10-year development plan for the development of Bakassi area of Nigeria.

Daniel Renieiju who made the recommendation during the investigate public hearing on the alleged killing of 97 Nigerians in Bakassi, noted that the fund will be drawn from major revenue generating agencies will be channeled to provision of critical infrastructure and resettlement of the affected people.

Other lawmakers who expressed support for the initiative, emphasised the need for the House to ensure that all the supervisory agencies account for the resources that will be provided within the period.

According to the report presented by Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, over 15,000 Nigerians have been forcibly returned from Cameroon to Nigeria between April and June 2017, as a fall out of the ongoing conflict orchestrated by the Book Haram in the Northern part of Nigeria.

Reports indicate that Nigerian Immigration Service has between January and June 2017 registered a total of 20,604 individuals who have returned from Cameroon to Banki, Pulka and Bama. Another 180,000 returnees from Chad, Cameroon and Niger are reported to have returned into Yobe, Adamawa and other parts of Borno state. This makes a total of about 360,000 registered returnees between January and June, 2017,” the report stated.

On her part, Nnenna Elendu-Ukeje, chairperson House Commitee on Foreign Affairs, stressed the need to asceratin the authenticity of the N35 billion reportedly released to the Cross River State government for the develooment of the area.

She emphasised the need for the affected state government to account for the staggered funds as captured in the reports presented to the Committee.

The lawmaker who frowned at the collapsed of the traditional way of boundary resolution, noted that the recent report has security dimension, hence solicited for collaboration of all stakeholders throughout the investigation.

While stressing the need for accountability of the resources within the agency, Elendu-Ukeje harped on the need for Nigerian government to take responsibility of the well-being on the Bakassi people.

In response to the presentation of various security agencies, the lawmakers decried the lack of synergy among government agencies in tracking the date of arrival of the Bakassi returnees and the rationale behind their return.

They also frowned at the inordinate attitude of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs towards get relevinformation from the High Commissioner.

The chairperson who blamed government for failing to tackle the ethno-religious group at the formative stage of insurgency, called for timely response to issue of Bakassi before it degenerated to another national crisis.

Speaking earlier, Sola Enikanolaiye, Permanent Secretary of Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs who recalled that Bakassi Peninsula has been the subject of a territorial dispute between Cameron and Nigeria, subscribed to voluntary jurisdiction of International Court of Justice at the Hague in allowing the dispute to be decided in the court.

According to him, “this dispute has in the past resulted in skirmishes between the Nigerian Arm Forces and their Cameroonian counterparts with the threat of war between the two countries,” adding that out of the 2100km of the contentious border lines, 1913km had been settled.

He maintained that looking at the ICJ judgment, “Nigeria seems to have gained more territories than Cameroon in the North even though the crown in the jewel may have the Bakassi Peninsula with all its natural resource endowments including, perhaps, access to Calabar Estuary and extensiin of the continental shelf.”

He confirmed that an inaugural meeting of the tripartite commission has been scheduled for 10th August 2017 to be followed by the Technical Working Group meeting on the 11 – 12 August, 2017.

He noted that the incident started following the deployment in July 2017 of a new Divisional Officer (DO) to Idabato sub- division of Cameroon to administer the Bakassi General Area.

“On assumption of office the new DO commenced the imposition of of new taxes on the residents  after a meeting with all the Chiefs.

“Accordingly, all men engaged in fishing and other business activities in the area were to pay N55,000; women – N30,000 and churches N50,000 per annum.

“Furthermore, taxes in packets of fish were raised from N200 to N1,000 whole other were to pay N1,000 per head for goats slaughtered by them.

“The sanctions placed on the residents for violation of the tax rules include seizure  of their boats and enforcement to pay double the amount of he initial tax. This accounts for the N100,000 which was hitherto heralded in the news and initial reports as the amount of the tax to be paid by Nigerians.”

He said according to the Nigerian Missions the death recorded were not orchestrated by the Gendarmes. He said some of the Nigerians fled their homes and headed for the Ikang Jetty “when the new DO threatened to use force. “It was while they were on their way that that some of them reportedly drowned.

On her part, Grace Ekanem, a former Commissioner from Cross River State, solicited for the intervention of Federal Government since the Green Tree agreement has elapsed.

The 70 year old who expressed regrets over the plight of the Bakassi people’s noted that it was difficult for the Bakassi indegenes to relocate from their ancestral habit despite Nigerian government decision to cede the area to Cameroon.

 

KEHINDE AKINTOLA, Abuja