IDPs Forced To Return Home In Borno

Internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Borno state are reportedly being forced to go back home to ruins, without certainty of their safety.

Naija News learnt the move is to show that there is progress in the war against Boko Haram insurgency as the 2019 elections approach.

The IDPs are being promised that they would continue to receive help from the federal government if they return home.

In June, some 2,000 IDPs living in Bakassi camp in Maiduguri, Borno state capital, were reportedly asked to return to a town called Guzamala.

According to the report, the government and officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have been meeting to discuss how to expedite the return of the IDPs to enable them register to vote.

They said, ‘If you refuse to return, you are on your own, the government will not help you anymore’,” one of the returnees identified as Hassan said.

The IDPs complained that apart from the unsafe conditions of the communities, they cannot earn a living due to insurgents activities.

“We were deceived,” an IDP identified as Modu was quoted as saying. “There is nothing in Guzamala other than suffering.”

The IDPs described the place as a “wasteland,” adding that most of the structures there are still shattered.

“There, some food and supplies – enough to feed a family of 10 for a day, according to one man – were distributed,” the report added.

“Since then, the returnees have been left for weeks at a time to fend for themselves. Some soldiers took pity on them and handed over their own water rations.”

No government official responded to an inquiry on the issue.