The Federal Government is making plans to acquire land in Abuja to permanently resettle Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) who fled from terrorism in the Northeast and now residing in some of the IDP camps in the Federal Capital Territory.
Co-chairman of the National Humanitarian Coordination Committee, and Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajia Sadiya Umar Farouq, announced this journalists after a meeting of the committee with President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, Abuja.
She was responding to journalists’ questions on what government plans to do for the IDPs in view of the possible spread of the Coronavirus disease.
She said: “Of course, Coronavirus has negative impact on all populations including our IDPs and the ministry is taking measures to see how we can sensitize these displaced communities in the camps as well as to supply them with all the medical needs to mitigate this virus.
“I am sure you know that a presidential task force has been constituted by Mr. President and the Ministry is a member. We are working day and night how take all the measures to prevent the impact of the virus in our country.
“This particular camp you are talking about, the Durumi camp is the camp that really benefits the most as far as humanitarian intervention is concerned.
“I remember when I was in the Refugees Commission, I visited that camp times without number and as we always say, it is better to really support these people to earn their own livelihood than for us to say we will keep on giving them food.
“So, the durable solution factor is what is going to come in. And we are working hard to see how we are going to support them. These people, we have supported them in areas of skills acquisition, I know we have empowered the women and the youths in that particular camp. The unfortunate thing is really the living condition where they are.
“Just a few weeks ago, I visited the Minister of FCT and he has assured us that he is going to give us land where we will really resettle these people.
“Don’t forget that these people have been there for a very long time, some of them might never go back to their communities and you can’t force them. That’s why we are looking at how we are going to get land for them to really put structures and resettle them – we are doing that.”
On the explosion that killed many and destroyed properties in Lagos last Sunday, the Minister said that “immediately it happened, our men were on ground, the National Emergency Management Agency activated all the other agencies that have to do with disaster response.
“It is a multi sectoral approach and all the other agencies were activated and moved in as first respondents. Immediately yesterday, I was in Lagos and condoled with the people and government of Lagos State and we have reiterated our commitment to seeing that this unfortunate incident do not occur again.
“Victims of this incident, we are going to support them with medical supplies as well as relief items especially in areas of food and non-food items. We are giving them food ration for two months- this is what I have pledged with the government of Lagos state and any other support that the government might deem feet to do.
“The Ministry is embarking on sensitization and campaign because most of these disasters are really avoidable. There are mainly borne out of negligence and we need to really sensitize our public on the dangers and also, especially the industrial disasters that happen.
“Some of these disasters are as a result of vandalism of our pipeline so, we are doing that and we have a framework in place. If fully implemented, we will be able to mitigate all these disasters.”
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