Anxiety over uncoordinated return of displaced persons

Speaking at the opening session of a stakeholders’ meeting on the IDPs’ return process in Yola, Adamawa State yesterday, Director General of the agency, Sani Sidi, said governments, security agencies and humanitarian organisations must be involved in the process.
Sidi who was represented by a director in the agency, Alhassan Nuhu, said: “We are witnessing spontaneous and uncoordinated movement of  internally displaced persons back to their communities as a result of the relative peace gradually returning to their areas.
“This is generating concern among humanitarian actors in the state and thus the need to put together a proper IDP returning matrix, a return standard operating procedure (SOPs) that will be endorsed by all humanitarian working groups in the state”.
 Governor Bala Nggilari who represented by the Secretary to the Adamawa State Government, urged participants to come up with workable documents for a well planned movement of  IDPs back to their towns and villages.
 He said investigations by the government showed that property worth ý N7.3 billion was destroyed in five out of the seven local government areas held by Boko Haram.
“Investigations in five out of seven local government areas that were occupied revealed that N7.3 billion worth of property was destroyed not to talk of the two most devastated LGAs of Michika and  Madagali because as at the time of the report, nobody had gone there”, he said.
 Weyle said there was need to conduct proper assessment of the recaptured areas with a view to restoring basic infrastructure and services.
 He noted that a well planned process would ensure safe and dignified return, saying the state government would try to implement the document produced at the end of the meeting.
  A Red Cross official said government and humanitarian agencies were supposed to organise the return of IDPs to liberated areas in order to ensure their safety and welfare.
 “Government and humanitarian agencies should be on top of the situation. Returnees should get support and be protected. There were cases were explosives planted by the insurgents killed some returning residents”, he said.
“There is also the issue of dignity because it is not proper for human being to be transported back to their homes in trailers and lorries, it should be in buses in a dignified way”, the official noted.
There are mixed feelings in Maiduguri, Borno State, over agitations by the  displaced persons (IDPs) to return home.
The clamour gathered momentum after the recent elections which were presided by reclaiming of over 40 towns and villages by Nigerian security forces with support from Chad, Cameroon and Niger.
But relevant authorities, including the Borno State government and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) say “it is premature” for the IDPs to rush back home.
Governor Kashim Shettima had set up a committee under the chairmanship of his deputy, Zannah Umar Mustapha to look at the possibility of returning people to places that have been certified safe.
Spokesman of NEMA in the Northeast, Mallam Abdulkadir Abdullahi, told our correspondent yesterday that they were aware of the clamour by some IDPs to go back home but needed security assurances.
Findings by our correspondent showed that there are at least 15 recognized camps that keep over 100,000 people in Maiduguri.
Credible sources said over 800,000 others live with extended family members and acquaintances while some live in unrecognized camps within and in the outskirt of Maiduguri. Most of the class emirs in Borno State, including the Shehu of Dikwa, emirs of Bama, Gwoza, Askira and Uba are living with their people in Maiduguri. Only the emirs of Biu and that of Shani are living in their palaces. The Defence Headquarters had in the last eight weeks announced the liberation of places like Bama, Gwoza, Dikwa, Mafa, Gamboru, Ngala, Mallam Fatori, Kukawa, Monguno and dozens of villages and hamlets. But sources said most of the towns and villages are in ruins and littered with dead bodies.
Our correspondent reports that despite the warnings, some IDPs, especially those living in unrecognized camps have since returned to their homes in towns like Mafa, Damboa, Konduga and other locations that are not far from Maiduguri. Many others that took refuge across Chad and Cameroon have also returned to places like Gamboru, Mallam Fatori and Marte.
Some of them had become victims of recent renewed offensive by the Boko Haram such as the killing of many in Kirenowa town of Marte LGA between last Thursday and Friday when the Boko Haram fighters once again took over the town. There was similar incident in Mafa on Saturday when the assailants reportedly attacked a military post, killed two soldiers and then descended on the locals that returned.