By SADIQ ABUBAKAR, Maiduguri –
A United Nations delegation has paid a courtesy visit on the Borno State Governor, Babagana Umara Zulum led by the new UN Country Representative and the acting Resident Humanitarian Co-Ordinator, Mr Mattias Schmale with other principal officers from the UN.
Mr. Schmale, who was the leader of the UN delegation while briefing the governor on the visit, thanked the Borno State Governor for his support and cooperation with all the UN teams and development partners in providing maximum support and collaboration for the state government to aid humanitarian activities in the state.
“We also seek details and guidelines of what the state wants UN to intervene in, I’m newly assigned as the new resident co-ordinator I want the state government to give me same coordination given to my predecessor Mr Edward Kallon”, Schmale said
Responding, Governor Zulum appreciated the UN contributions so far in th state, saying,” “On behave of myself and the people of Borno State thank you for your tremendous support towards the humanitarian aid and recovery effort of the devastating impact of the insurgency .”
” We remain eternally grateful for your support, we will look forward to your usual support for a purposeful life. However I will like to note that, for the past 6 years the IDPs in some camps have been requesting to go back to their ancestral homes.
“During the campaign, we visited all camps across the state and most camps were requesting to go back where security is allowed. In answering the call of our people the state government made with the representative of various NGOs and came up with a plan, a wider consultation was made before the implementation plan.
“The Borno state government has never forced the return of any IDP, it is in accordance with the Kampala convention, we seek mutual co-operation with the UN, not UN to take charge. UN should complement the state government’s effort with the International best practice.
“There’s a degree of peace recorded now in Borno, so I see no reason we can’t returned some of our IDPs to their locality who are ready to be returned with clarity from various security organisations in the state.
“I will also like to call your attention on some of the activities of the INGOs that they are not doing well, only enriching themselves though some have performed wonderfully well, we want to shift from short time plan to long time plan”, Zulum said.
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