60% of Yobe IDPs back home

Executive Secretary, Yobe State Emergency Management Agency, SEMA, Musa Jidawa, has said that more than sixty per cent of internally Displaced  People (IDP’s) in the state have returned home for good and are finally settled to normal life.

He, however, revealed that about two hundred and eighty thousand of these vulnerable people especially widows and children who used to stay in host communities within the state capital Damaturu are also ready to move since the security situation had greatly  improved in the state.

IDPs and resident IDPs became a phenomenon in Yobe when the insurgent Boko Haram overran a large chunk of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, North east Nigeria since 2009 causing sorry,tears and blood for many families who became displaced and extremely traumatised.

Jidawa, who spoke exclusively to the Nigerian Tribune in Damaturu recently revealed that  out of the remaining 40 per cent still in make shift camps created by themselves, care was still being given to them by his agency.

“If you are comming into town, you will see some of these settlements created along the road, we cannot fold our hands and watch them scavenge do intervene. But I can assure you that we have very few people in camps in Damaturu right now.

“Some of them are safer within the communities while others are not but we have ensured that each community  is well protected. There are two camps approved by government

We have less than three thousand in pompomari and others spread elsewhere in kukareta camp.

“They have six self set settlements in addition to the two other major camps in Yobe. I can report to you that we are working on basic packages for each idps so that they do not go home and suffer. Very soon we would not be talking about official camps anymore.

“With what we have been able to arrange for them, they should be able to move freely for now until it is time to go home, I mean the remaining few.  We are looking at a lot of factors, immediately the Yadi road is declared safe, more people will return,” he said.