Nigerians asked to support IDPs in their community
Nigerians have been urged to support and take care of the IDPs, living amongst them in host communities and camps across the country.
The Adamawa state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Ahmad Sajoh, who made the call while speaking at a two-day workshop organized by the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), with support from the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) for the North-East zone, in the state, maintained that the IDPs are suffering not because they choose to but due to communal clashes, flood, insurgency and a host of other disasters.
Sajoh, who spoke at the opening of the workshop with the theme ‘Engaging State and non-state Actors towards a national Internally Displaced Persons Policy and Act in Nigeria’, stated that people are to know what it feels like to be displaced, they would need to get a platform that will be quick and fast in responding to their needs.
He disclosed that the state government is extremely committed to taking care of IDPs, Governor Muhammadu Umar Jibrilla cares about the IDPs to the extent of celebrating his Eid el- Kabir with them in the camp and will continue to support the cause of humanity especially the disadvantaged ones.
“Some good has come out of the ashes of displacement as some IDPs have been given scholarship to study even abroad”, the commissioner stated.
He stated further that the challenges of insurgency have further brought the people of the state together “There are lessons we have learned from the challenges, it brings unity between the faith.”
The Senior Program Officer of CISLAC, Okeke Anya, decried the nonexistence of laws that covers persons displacements.
Mr. Anya, who was represented by CISLAC Executive Director, Mr. Auwal Ibrahim Musa, maintained the need for the adoption of the national policy and laws on IDPs in Nigeria.
He therefore called on participants and other Nigerians to put all hand on deck and find sustainable and lasting solutions to issues of displacement.
Our correspondent in Yola reports the workshop was attended by participants from Borno, Yobe, Bauchi, Gombe and Taraba states.
