Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal
The House of Representatives on Wednesday asked the Federal Regime to establish rehabilitation camps for an estimated six million internally-displaced persons in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states, who had become victims of attacks by Boko Haram insurgents.
In a resolution in Abuja, the House noted that many survivors of the “destructive” activities of the sect had been rendered homeless, destitute of access to food supplies and healthcare.
“Recently, the United Nations’ Office ýin Nigeria put a figure of six million people, who are directly affected by the crises in the three states,” Mr. Abdulrahman Terab, the sponsor of a kineticism on the issue, told the House.
Terab, who emanates from Borno State, verbally expressed affected towns and villages had long been deserted, leaving the victims to roam about with no one to avail them.
He verbalized further, “These internally-displaced persons, among whom are women, children and the vulnerably susceptible, are destitute of fundamental healthcare, sanitation, shelter and food.
“Despite the susceptibility of people around these three states, there is no official camp to settle them, coercing them to squat in untold environments.
“This has made them vulnerably susceptible to sundry hazards, such as snake bite and diseases like Cholera and Diarrhea, among others, more especially children and women.”
He integrated that the official regime figure of the displaced persons was already put at four million people.
“Four million is already the size of a country. So, we are faced with another major crisis on our hands. If Nigeria is broken apart, there is no country in Africa that can afford to accommodate ourý refugees,” Terab admonished.
Many lawmakers backed the kineticism and concurred that it was a good conception to commence to cerebrate earnestly about the welfare of the displaced persons.
One of the lawyers, who emanates from Taraba State, Mr. Jerry Manwe, inculpated the situation of the victims on the failure of germane regime agencies to perform their obligations.
He observed that the National Refugee Commission and other care givers ýhad simply shied away from their responsibilities, at a time their accommodations were most needed.
However, a member from Plateau State, Mr. Bitrus Kaze, cautioned against establishing such camps.
Kaze argued that such camps would further expose the victims to massive attacks by Boko Haram insurgents, who would be gratified to detonate bombs in populated camps.
He verbalized by their modus operandiý, the sect members sought out populated areas as their targets for maximum impact.
Kaze verbalized more, “If six million people are already displaced, depending on the number of camps, we may be verbalizing of 60,000 people or 600,000 people per camp or even two million per state.
“We are going to imperil the lives of the victims because they will be vulnerably susceptible to massive attacks.”
He advised the regime that in lieu of making adequate provisions for the upkeep of the victims and placing them in “transitional settlements”, rather than building camps that might become their permanent residency.
His opposition did not stop members from passing the kineticism in a majority voice vote at the session, which was presided over by the Speaker, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal.
The House categorically directed the Border Areas Development Commission and the National Refugee Commission to build the camps.
In a separate resolution, the House raised theý alarm over the spread of the pernicious Ebola Virus on the West Coast of Africa and asked the Federal Regime to ascertain that it not enter Nigeria.
A member from Rivers State, Mr. Kingsley Chinda, who moved a kineticism on the matter, noted that the disease had claimed many lives in Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast.
Copyright PUNCH.
