Nigeria and the plight of Darfur refugees in Chad

Hajia Fatima Ibrahim Bello, a former broadcaster with the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) in Bauchi and a Chadian national, Mr Bakhit Bahar Ali, are the leaders of the NGOs and the arrowheads of the campaign for the provision of succour for the suffering Darfuris. They gave a graphic account of the pathetic situation in the […]

Hajia Fatima Ibrahim Bello, a former broadcaster with the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) in Bauchi and a Chadian national, Mr Bakhit Bahar Ali, are the leaders of the NGOs and the arrowheads of the campaign for the provision of succour for the suffering Darfuris. They gave a graphic account of the pathetic situation in the camp and called on Nigerians to be their brother’s keeper.

The Darfuris, we all know, are in refugee camps in Chad because of a war which broke out in their own country, the Sudan, in 2004 and has been raging since then. At present, there are reportedly over 500,000 refugees scattered in 12 camps in Chad. The refugees are said to be in dire straits as some epidemics, most prominently cholera and rashes, have broken out in seven of the 12 camps, bringing torment and death to men, women and children. There is a well-founded fear that with the state of unsanitary condition in those camps, all of them may eventually suffer from outbreak of deadly epidemics. Hunger and malnutrition, insecurity and the inclement weather of the desert eastern Chad, are the other woes said to be afflicting the refugees.

The leaders of the NGOs said that while they acknowledge with deep appreciation the fact that on the African continent, Nigeria has been in the forefront of the search for the resolution of the Darfur crisis as she has been spearheading the military, diplomatic and political resolution of the conflict, they said they were in Abuja to try to appeal to the well-known sense of fellow-feeling among Nigerians to help in the immediate welfare of Darfuri refugees who are suffering greatly because of their displacement from their own country and who have become helpless tenants in a land far removed from theirs.

The NGO leaders said they are particularly concerned about the suffering of Darfuri children and women in the camps who have no access to tents, food, medicines, water, educational facilities, etc. They are worried because the future of a whole generation of Darfuri is becoming uncertain in those camps because of the dire deprivation they are facing.

They disclosed that come Tuesday the 25th of October at the prestigious Shehu Musa Yar’adua Centre in Abuja, they intend to launch a N2 billion appeal fund and whatever is realised from the launch would be used to provide basic human needs of the refugees.

Specifically, they said the relief fund would be applied to the following ends: (1) to provide immediate relief materials for the refugees (2) to build fairly durable educational structures in the refugee camps (3) to build a medical services base of at least 12 life centres to reduce to the barest minimum infant and women mortality (4) to sink boreholes and mechanised wells that will provide potable water for the refugees (5) to establish a vocational centre for the training of the adult refugee population so as to enhance self-reliance and(6) to promote cordial and healthy relationship between the refugees and their host communities.

This writer wishes to join those NGOs in appealing to the Nigerian Government, corporate entities and private individuals with a heart of gold to respond heartily or enthusiastically to the move to raise funds with which to give succour to our Darfuri brothers and sisters who have been uprooted from their own land by a conflict that has so far remained intractable. While efforts are on to resolve the conflict at the political level, we have on our hands and on our consciences a humanitarian disaster which should be resolved immediately.

Whenever a humanitarian crisis occurs anywhere on the African continent, the expectation of many self-respecting Africans is that governments and leaders of African countries should lead the way in showing concern before we can have the moral right and the confidence to call upon the international community for help. It is quite embarrassing that whenever any unfortunate disaster happens anywhere on the continent we look up to other races to show the lead.

In some cases, Africans do not respond at all in aid of the victim-sister African country. An end has to be put to this kind of attitude. Outsiders should not be allowed to weep louder than the bereaved, especially in situations where the cause of the disaster is political disagreement among our perennially quarrelling governing elite.

The excuse of our poverty and lack will not do. We cannot forever fold our hands and expect the relatively well-off European and Asiatic races to do things for our fellow brothers and sisters while we claim that we are too poor to offer any help. The matter is not our lack but our will to act both to solve the consequences of our disagreements and the social problems they cause as a result.

It is true that in terms of helping politically, diplomatically and militarily to find solutions to war crisis on the continent and anywhere else in the world for that matter, Nigeria has acquitted herself well as a responsible international citizen. Nigeria has been in the forefront in helping the Darfuris. We have contributed troops to the United Nations-African Union (UNAMID) forces meant to enforce peace in Darfur. The blood of some of our citizens has been shed in the search for peace in that war-torn part of Africa.  All of this is commendable.

But our government should continue to do all within its means to help those who have become refugees as a result of the conflict and are a living eyesore near our borders. Even if we consider the doctrine of enlightened we will discover that to help the Darfuri refugees will be in our national interest as the refugees if not well catered for and engaged in productive occupation can constitute a security threat both to our neighbour Chad and to us as well.

It is my humble plea that in addition to what it will do, the Federal Government should mobilise state and local governments, Corporate Nigeria, the diplomatic community in the country, kind-hearted citizens and even school children to join in contributing to raising funds for the Darfuri refugees.

From the above listed objectives for which the organisers have said they will apply the funds raised, one can say with a high degree of confidence that the brains behind the idea appear to be genuinely concerned about the plight of the Darfuris and would apply the funds for the purpose intended.

Malam Abdallah writes from 12 Baga Rd, Maiduguri, Borno State