By Augustina Anyaegbu

A MAJOR disturbing fallout of the on-going war against insurgents in the North East of Nigeria is the worsening crisis of internally displaced persons, IDPs.

While troops of the Nigerian Armed Forces battle to contain the insurgents from over running communities and spreading terror and destruction, many have been forced to flee their homes and are presently scattered in different makeshift settlements where they are finding it difficult surviving under the harsh condition.

This was initially the case of IDPs who had fled violence in Madagali, Mubi and surrounding areas of Adamawa State until recently. Relief came their way when they got another surprising humanitarian visit from the American University of Nigeria, AUN, staff, students and the Adamawa Peacemakers Initiative, API. The visit to the host community on September 21 was to help Internally Displaced Persons get over the harsh reality of living under near extreme privation.

The team, led by President Ensign, first visited St Teresa’s  Catholic Church, Jimeta, where about 7, 500 people are taking refuge.  They donated foodstuff and other supplies. The Catholic Bishop of Yola Diocese, Bishop Stephen Mamza, received the items from President Ensign.

Displaced persons

Dr. Ensign said that AUN and API were honoured to support what the Bishop is doing with the displaced persons who have come from Madagali and Mubi. “We have pooled resources as one community to make sure that everyone, Muslims and Christians, have enough to eat, a place to stay, and a future. So we stand united to make sure that people’s needs are being met.”

Imam Dauda Bello, a member of API, acknowledged AUN’s role of helping humanity. He said the University has consistently shown concern for suffering people and praised the University, saying: “Their (AUN’s) concern is for humanity, not for Muslims or Christians; it is for all human victims of this calamity.”

Bello also called on every member of the society to assist the displaced persons in order to alleviate their sufferings. “I would like to call on everybody, not only the wealthy, because everyone has something to offer.”

The AUN-API team also visited a mosque in Yola, where it donated similar materials.

At the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, camp, it assisted the refugees to improve the camp’s sanitation. The NYSC camp for IDPs is managed by Adamawa State Emergency Management Agency, ADSEMA, while AUN is helping to create 15 latrines for women and 10 for men.

The Permanent Secretary to ADSEMA, Mr. HarunaHamma-Furo, also praised the AUN-API gesture. “This great moment is one of the best things you can give to somebody. If you give somebody food, he eats it and after sometime he forgets it. But if you develop him, you’ve given him life. Here at the camp we’ve gone beyond thinking of feeding. We are now after their (refugees’) career.”

He noted that the bulk of these persons are women and children. Their education is of paramount interest. “These are the future leaders of tomorrow. If you disrupt their education, it is going to tell on them….”

Thirty-eight university employees have volunteered to open their homes to refugees, and have been given relief materials as care packages in support of the IDPs they are hosting.    About 300 of these IDPs are now in the AUN volunteers’ care.

…Donates learning resources to them

On September 27, 2014 President Ensign led the AUN community to distribute learning materials to internally displaced persons, IDPs, now living in Mubi, Adamawa State. The learning resources included 300 textbooks, 252 notebooks, five packets of pencil erasers, eight packets of ballpoint pens, 10 boxes of pencils, and a carton of printing papers donated by AUN Academy. Also on the list are bags of detergents and drinking cups.

The President who presented the materials to the Adamawa State Emergency Management team said that AUN represented an educational institution whose mission is to support the community. She further expressed the vision of a development university as one that ensures its host community is living in peace, and growing economically and socially.

“It is not a huge donation but it is a contribution to show that education must go on under any circumstance.”

In addition to the learning materials, the Academy will also be sending some volunteer teachers to tutor at the refugee camp until the insurgency subsides in their area.

The Principal of the school, Mr. Ashish Gill, noted that their contribution is “a drop in the ocean of knowledge.”