By Henry Ibya, Makurdi
Worried over the continued stay of about two million Benue indigenes displaced by herdsmen now living in different IDPs camp for the past 14- years, Benue State government has disclosed that it has commenced the process of returning the displaced population to their ancestral homes.
Special Adviser to Governor Hyacinth Alia on Bureau for International Cooperation and Development, John Akuse made the disclosure on Thursday while presenting the state Durable Solutions Framework Development Action Plan Strategy for internally displaced persons, IDPs at a one-day workshop put together by the state taskforce committee on Durable Solutions in collaboration with UNDP and members of CSOs, held at Palm Garden Motel, Makurdi.
He said Governor Alia as a man of compassion had expressed worry over the dehumanizing conditions of the IDPs right from his campaign days and promised to prioritize the issue, adding that the governor has set up the committee not only to fulfill his campaign promises, but to ensure that the human rights of those displaced including rights to security, descent accommodation, and ownership of property were protected.
In a goodwill massage, Robert Piper, UNDP’s special adviser on solutions to internal displacement, delivered by Adewole Oke ,UNDP Durable Solutions representative in Benue State, acknowledged the invaluable contributions of the Benue State Taskforce Committee on Durable Solutions and expressed gratitude for their collaboration on what he described as an important task given them by Governor Hyacinth Alia.
Also speaking, principal private secretary to the Deputy Governor, Lawrence Ogwuche, also a member of the team told the IDPs that the objective of the workshop was to interact with those affected in order to have first hand information regarding their challenges.