BY NDAHI MARAMA, MAIDUGURI

Wife of the President, Hajiya Aisha Muhammadu Buhari and her committee members on Humanitarian crisis yesterday distributed million bags and cartons of Masavita, Fortified Action Meal and other relief items to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) who have since returned home in Gwoza, Askira Uba, Magumeri, Mafa, Dikwa local government areas of Borno state following degrading of insurgents and relative peace.

The gesture according to her, is to encourage other IDPs who were still living in resettlement camps to vacate and go back to their various communities, instead of continuing staying in camps.

The items were nutritional food collected from the ‘Get Involved’ initiatives, under her “Future Assured” programme, where individuals, agencies, parastatalls, her friends, associates and organizations put hands together and donated in cash or kind through office of the First Lady to assist victims of boko haram and other related violence in the country.

Distribution the items on Sunday at the Government House to Caretaker Chairman of the benefitting councils, Hajiya Buhari who was represented by Secretary of her Committee on Relief Items, Hon. Zuwaira Gambo said, in the last one month, the people of Beneshiekh, the headquarters of Kaga Local Government Area benefitted from the same gesture during the flagging off programme which she personally attended, stressing that, the exercise which is a continous one to be extended to all victims of violence across the country, is mainly aimed at cushioning the hardships being experienced by returned IDPs, as they begin a new live in their liberated communities.

She said, each of the five local government areas would get 1200 bags of Masavita Golden Penny, 500 cartons of fortified Action Meal and Non fortified meal, 90 bags of 25kg rice, 2 bundles of blankets, several cartons of milk and choco peak, detergents among others.

She assured that, all communities affected in the course of insurgency in the north east and other crisis prone areas across the country will also benefit from the ‘Get Invloved’ gesture.

Her words; ” We are here with my committee members to continue with distribution of relief items to our IDPs who have returned back to their homes, we are doing this so as to cushion the hardship of our traumatized victims of boko haram and other related violence that have hitherto affected some parts of this country, particularly the north east.

“Now that peace have been restored by our gallant troops and our IDPs have also returned home, we deem it feet with my friends, associates and well wishers to assist our people with nutritional food items. I believe this gesture which will be extended to all parts of this country affected by violence, will encourage those still leaving in camps go back to their liberated communities.

“Like in the case of Borno which is the most hit states by insurgents, I have nominated wife of the state governor, Hajiya Nana Kashim Shettima to be the chairperson, and Hon. Zuwaira Gambo who is the secretary of the committee, this is because I have confident in both of them that they will judiciuosly use their office to ensure that the items reached a target beneficiaries”. Aisha Buhari said.

She therefore thanked her friends and associates for donating the items as part of her ‘Get Involved’ pet project.

In her welcome address, wife of the Borno State Governor, Nana Shettima thanked Mrs. Buhari for choosing the state to kick start the programme, which according to her, is not only timely, but necessary, in view of the devastation executed by insurgents in the state, which had forced over 1.6 million people out of their ancestral homes for the past two years.

She also thanked those who have contributed towards the success of the ‘Get Involved’ programme which has direct impact on the lives of victims of violence. She however called on individuals, corporate organizations to contribute and promised to ensure that the items reached the target beneficiaries.

In his brief remark at the occasion, governor Kashim Shettima who was represented by his Deputy, Alhaji Usman Durkwa said, the emergence of boko haram was ‘the worst calamity in the history of Borno state’, and commended President Muhammadu Buhari and his wife, Nigerian Military and other security agencies in the fight against terrorism and concern to the plight of victims of insurgency in the north east and the country in general.

Also in a vote of thanks, on behalf of the beneficiaries, member Representing Askira Uba at the State House of Assembly, Hon. Abdullahi Askira expressed gratitude to wife of the President to come to the aid of victims of violence perpetrated by boko haram sect and other miscreants in the country.

He therefore said, items donated will be judiciously distributed to the target beneficiaries.