Immediate past chairman of the TETfund, Kashim Ibrahim Imam, has embarked on the distribution of 200,000 packs of cooked foods to victims of the Maiduguri flood and appealed to well-meaning Nigerians to rally around the affected population.
He said a minimum of 6,000 packs of the cooked foods are being distributed daily to the victims in their respective camps in the Maiduguri metropolis, adding that after the packs of foods, which might be scaled up to 10,000 packs, he would distribute 7,500 bags of 50kg, 25kg and 10kgs of rice to the benefiting victims.
He said this on Thursday shortly after distributing the food packs at the Yerwa Central School, Gamboru Ward, and Sheikh Ibrahim Saleh Mosque in the Gwange area of Maiduguri.
He expressed his profound sadness over the devastating incident that led to a colossal loss of lives, estimating that hundreds may have perished during the incident.
“We are saddened by the magnitude of destruction caused by the flood in Maiduguri and its environs. The carnage, the loss of lives, the loss of properties, and the unimaginable displacement of residents are heart-wrenching.
“ Every indigene of Borno is sad. We are all saddened by the devastation that has befallen Maiduguri. We are saddened by the number of lives lost. Still, sadly, some bodies are being discovered daily as the flood recedes. Many people are homeless. Nobody prepared for this as people were caught unawares,” Imam said.
He disclosed that the distribution exercise would last for two to three weeks, after which the situation is expected to normalise.
“ Subsequently, seven thousand five hundred bags of various sizes (fifty, twenty-five, and ten kg) of rice would be distributed as medium-term interventions to support those impacted by the floods.
“I relocated my entire family to Maiduguri and stayed back because Zulum told us that the scale of devastation is beyond the ability of the state to cope.
“In line with the appeal of Governor Zulum, we elected to focus on alleviating the sufferings of people who need food and water with immediate effect, so I am happy to inform you that I am providing a total of 200,000 food packs. we have already commenced with an average of 6,000 a day and wish to scale it to 10,000 packs daily.
“The immediate emphasis is on food. I have seen people crying that they haven’t eaten in two days, which is an immediate concern of everybody; as water recedes and we count our losses, these other challenges will also come to the fore”, he said.
