Nigeria’s New Year gift to the IDPs – more compassionate treatment

Despite all the hues and cries from citizens as well as the Senate over the near total neglect of Nigerians at the various Internally Displaced People’s (IDP) camps in various parts of the Northeast of the country and the alarm sounded by the United Nations and other refugee agencies of the extreme hunger and starvation in the camps, the government has continued to deny the news and even President Buhari came hard on those raising the alarm claiming reports by local and international humanitarian agencies detailing the high level of deprivation in the war-ravaged north-east Nigeria were exaggerated. He said the United Nations and other private humanitarian groups are deliberately hyping the level of the crisis for financial gains.

But alas, he was the one that was dead wrong. We have cited several reports by renowned world bodies and agencies which all points to the excruciating hunger and despair in the camps and which the government has refused to act on or even allow aid agencies access to the camps to provide relief. More particularly harrowing is the report by the Human Rights Watch which accused government and camp officials, vigilante groups, policemen and soldiers of systematically raping and sexually exploiting women and girls in the camps. Of course, after they have been starved to near death, the women and young girls have no option than to yield to the devilish wish of those ravenous officials just to for morsels of food to keep themselves, their hapless children and or families alive. Other than some half-hearted promise to investigate the abuse, the government has done nothing to improve conditions in the camps and have rather tightened access or movement in and out of the camps such that those in the camps have now become prisoners while journalists and investigators are barred from documenting actual happenings in the camps. 

For months, foreign news media have been reporting the corruption and diversion of relief materials delivered to the camps by camp officials and security agencies. The UK Guardian of Tuesday 13 September, 2016 reported protests by angry camp residents over the stealing of food meant for the residents while they are left to starve to death. The best feeding ration any IDP camp got was once a day. The paper quoted a camp resident thus: “In the night they load up vehicles with food and take it away to their houses…But I can’t complain. [A local official] said that if I complain he will tell soldiers that I am a member of Boko Haram and they will kill me.”

But recently, some Nigerian journalists have succeeded in penetrating the camps masquerading as refugee workers. Their reports are much worse than we imagined. The reports are chronicles of extreme hunger, starvation, death, total neglect, sexual and psychological abuse by the government.

What is more, Senate investigation has unravelled the worst form of corruption in the Presidential Initiative in the North East (PINE) where the SGF has taken liberty with the funds awarding phony contracts indiscriminately to himself or his associates and accepting kick backs while those at the camps are left to die of hunger.

The government cannot continue to treat its citizens with absolute contempt and as mere nuisances and expect patriotism from these same citizens. It never happens.

We feel this is the time the government come to terms with its responsibilities and treat its citizens the way citizens of a civilised country should be treated. This will be the best New Year present to those hapless people who had no means of celebrating the yuletide due to extreme hunger. Only then can it expect patriotism, dedication and cooperation from its citizens.