Failing family unit amongst displaced persons

The living condition of the IDPs is a sorry tale. The Nigerian government has not done well in responding to its duty of protecting the right and dignity of IDPs.Even where a family has succeeded in moving into the recognized or unrecognized camps unhurt, life inside it leaves no room for any kind of family […]

The living condition of the IDPs is a sorry tale. The Nigerian government has not done well in responding to its duty of protecting the right and dignity of IDPs.
Even where a family has succeeded in moving into the recognized or unrecognized camps unhurt, life inside it leaves no room for any kind of family integration. Everything is shared from food, to cloth to even living space. Men clock together, and share whatever can be reused, likewise the women.
The 2015 World Population Day (WPD) celebration with the theme “Vulnerable population in emergencies” has once again helped to re –direct global attention to  the plight of IDPs.
Our reporter joined the National Population Commission (NPopC) to visit select IDP camps at the heart of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) where the team was met with a gory sight and deplorable living condition.
The faces of the nearly 15,000  people at the New Kuchingoro camp clearly indicate people abandoned to their fate.
Dr (Mrs) Brimah, a Public health expert with the Planned Parenthood Federation of Nigeria (PPFN) in describing the situation to our reporter said: “We have been working with the IDPs since January 2015 and I can tell you that their situation is terrible. Their environmental situation, health, food, shelter and WASH situation ( water hygiene and sanitation) are deplorable”.
The IDPs are gathered into makeshift tents which lacks proper ventilation. Open defecation is also  a visible feature with children exploring the open environment for some play times .
Men and women stare straight at faces of sympathizers who come in droves to support the camps with some little donation from sanitary pads to food items.
 “Good spirited individuals are doing their bits but we need a structured and integrated organization of the activities in this camp. Their brothers and sisters in Borno are faring a lot better because they are getting both national and international attention,” Dr Brimah said.
The number of young children especially new born is of great concern to visitors. The age of this children clearly suggests that they would have been born right inside the camps.
The public health specialist said: “On our part we have been providing help with family planning and the various methods of contraception. The kind of contraception we are pushing is the long acting reversible method from three to five  years so that at any time when they are comfortable to have a baby, they can go to the nearest hospital and have it removed.
“We are pushing for this because in their situation they do not have easy access to any health facility, if you give the short active method, they need to locate a facility every two  months to have it renewed. The ones that have gotten pregnant while in the camps have cried in regrets because they were not aware of their options.”
One of the pregnant women who spoke to our reporter said: “Look at the situation we are in, why would I want a baby to come into this world.  Some of my sisters (other pregnant  women in the camp) are asking for the termination of their pregnancies.”
Dr Brimah said, “If we have an outbreak of say cholera here, the situation will be devastating, what about the young men and women, they can become potential target for recruitment into all manner of vices.”
The chairman of the NPopC Eze Duruiheoma  also expressed disappointment with the near absence of government intervention.
He said: “Our interest is in anything that affects any sizeable part of our population. We must make sure they are healthy enough to contribute their quota to the development of this country. We know things are bad generally but we can make it better for some people.
“We have seen raw determination on the faces of people. I have seen children studying in near impossible situation but the living condition can be made better What we have here are not tents as such, I wonder how anybody can sleep here for five minutes.”
The chairman said on the interim,  government should do its best  to improve the living conditions of the IDPs.
,Chief Executive Officer  (CEO) of Lious Valentino  Food and Beverages,  Demola Banjo who was also at one of the camps to support the IDPs echoed the concern of the NpopC chairman when he said; ‘As  Corporate Social Responsibly, we decided to come and give them our products to feed even if it’s  snacks, to enable them  have some extra things to live on and to give them hope that there is a future to look forward to.”
He said a lot needs to be done, by the corporate world to rally round all  stakeholders in Nigeria to give support to the IDPs.
While the IDPs await the awakening of the Nigerian authorities to its responsibility, they have gone about organizing themselves into small units for effective management.
Dr Brimah said: “They have men and women leaders, they have their Imam and pastors and they have their disciplinary committees and they function like a regular normal community in any part of the world.”
“Those of  us, who are better privileged than they are need to help them get through this trying period,” she added.