Benue gov raises alarm of IGP to withdraw police from IDPs camps

BENUE State Governor, Samuel Ortom on Wednesday raised the alarm of the plan by police authority to withdraw its officers deployed to protect the Internally Displaced Persons, camps located in eight places in the state.

Consequently, fear has enveloped the IDPs camps across the state.

Governor Ortom had on Wednesday told newsmen of the information at his disposal that policemen in the IDP camps were withdrawn on the directive of the Inspector General of Police, saying, ‘ I have no control over them.”

“I will be going to the camps to visit them to tell them to find alternative because there is no point in keeping them.

“The N200million Wike promised is in the account, I will use the money to mobilize them and whatever we get at the State Emergency Management Agency, SEMA will be distributed to them,” Ortom said.

The Tribune Online visited three of the eight camps located in Makurdi and Guma local government areas of the state on Thursday and report that the people in the camp now live in fear.

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During the visit, there was the presence of policemen at Abegana camp in Makurdi, RCM primary school and Humanitarian Refugees camps all in Daudu.

The chairman of IDPs at Abegana camp, Philip Usatse told our correspondent that report of withdrawal of policemen filtered into the camp but said that he was not sure if the directive would affect the camp.

It was a different scenario at RCM primary school, and Humanitarian Refugees camp all in Daudu as those spoke to expressed uncertainty with the development.

According to Pa Ortese, “we were told that the policemen deployed to this camp are expected to leave the camp and you know if such thing happens, we are not saved.”

Mrs Theresa Kajo who spoke through an interpreter said, ‘we have been living in fear since then, we can not go back to our communities because Fulanis are still there.”

However, the camp commandant at the Daudu camps, Omirigbe Angela confirmed the report of plans to withdraw policemen attached to the camps.

“It is true, we were told yesterday (Wednesday) that the policemen deployed to the two camps in Daudu here would be withdrawn today but as you can see they are still here,” adding that ten policemen were attached to each of the camps in Daudu.

Efforts to get the reaction of the spokesman of the state command, DSP Moses Yamu failed as he did not pick the call.