Plateau State will ever remain very grateful to Her Excellency, the nation’s First Lady, Senator Remi Bola Tinubu for her love and care for its people. Within the week, she doled out a whooping five hundred million naira( half a billion naira) to the families of those killed,maimed and displaced in the crisis in six local governments of the state: Bassa, Riyom, Barkin Ladi, Bokkos, Jos South and Mangu in which thousands of lives were killed.
Only a heart full of genuine love and charity could demonstrate such to a state not under the same party with that of her husband,but of the opposition That is divine love in action. Senator Remi has demonstrated the love of God which she preaches as a woman of God and the sermon of universal love for one another. It is not easy to do such a thing under a partisan consideration except where someone is truly in love.
As a mother of the nation , she saw the urgent need to interven to provide relief for those affected and this she did with speed and the highest level of commitment, just few months in office. We are truly grateful to her on behalf of our people. We on the Plateau appreciate deeply this kindness. It is very obvious that she is disturbed and worried about the ugly situation happening around the country and the first state she launched her charity is ours. We equally appreciate her husband and the President of the country,
Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the moral and otherwise support to do that which is pleasing and soothing to helping those in need to recover some loses and get back on their feet. This was not part of the campaign promises of the president, yet his wife was able to think and execute it within their first quarter in office. We are witnesses to the bogus promise by the immediate past administration under Mohamadu Buhari in which 10billion naira was promised to the state for the purpose of rehabilitating and returning the internally displaced persons,IDPs to their ancestral locations.
But the money, to the best of my knowledge, was not released and the then government of Barr Simon Bako Lalong has not said anything to our hearing. No one will blame Lalong if the money was not released because he did not make the promise, but it behoves on him to make the clarification before leaving office this year as part of his handover notes to Barr Caleb Mutfwang so that the state can pursue it under Tinubu.
It will be easier to get the money under the present government because of the friendship and concern already shown. It is therefore the duty of our new governor to remind the federal government so that the money be made available. This will greatly enable the rehabilitation of many of the families affected and to return them to their villages where they have been displaced for years.
It can only be imagined the untold suffering of the people of these local governments whose sources of live hood such as agriculture, commerce and other economic bussiness covering health, education, rural development, etc were completely uprooted while their houses destroyed.
Many of them can no longer go back to their farms or their previous businesses for fear of being killed. Many of them are still living with relatives and friends in other areas while majority are still in IDP camps living at the mercy of relatives, spirited individual philanthropists and non governmental and faith base organisations for survival. The situation is quite pathetic unbelievable. Many have been out of school because once displaced from your original place of abode, a lot of complex family matters emerge that are beyond the control of the people. It is a situation that one cannot wish for his or her enemy and therefore to have such help is to show deep gratitude to the first lady.
That’s why one can only appreciate spirited individuals like the young Plateau born entrepreneur, Chief Kefas Ropshik alias Kefiano, the Chairman and CEO of Abuja base Kefiano Autos who ,out of tears and deep hearted concern took over the training and parentage of over 50 of the internally displaced children,
IDCs, providing food and clothing, healthcare for them.and sponsoring them in various schools. Through his Kefiano Foundation, many of the IDCs have completed primary and secondary schools and are comfortably moving up to the next levels of their educational pursuits. Just yesterday the Foundation embarked on a massive free medical health care for the need y in Gindiri and donated alot of foodstuffs to the people.Many other men and women of goodwill and charity are equally appreciated for doing good and helping the needy to stand on their feed. The personal visit of the first lady to the state is of multiple advantage to Plateau because it afforded the state the opportunity to present the facts as they are to government and also for the first lady to see things for herself and get concentrated first hand information about the entire situation.
Am very sure the Governor has enumerated the various dimensions of the agony the people are going through to the first lady for onward delivery to the president for more help.
For as long as the IDPs are not relocated back to their ancestral homes and made secured in their traditional homes so as to continue their normal lives of agriculture and other commercial activities, the insecurity will keep escalating. The federal government should help all communities displaced by ensuring that no one takes over the territory of another.
This can be done by providing adequate security for the communities and removing all those who settled in other peoples places . There are many vacant places for people to stay,live and do their businesses if truly they want to. But a situation where some people forcefully took over the homes of fellow beings after displacing them and making such places their own, speak volumes of negative intentions. Its not fair or proper to do so. That is criminal, inhuman and wicked.
The kind gesture of Madam First Lady,Remi Tinubu must not just be commended but emulated. This is the greatest succour that can come the way of a traumatised people. It was a miracle waiting in the wings which has landed on time. God Almighty bless Mrs Tinubu and her husband for taking it upon themselves to help the IDPs in Plateau State.
