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| Osinbajo |
Nigerians in the North-East have been commended for their
good neighborliness, accommodating internally displaced victims of
the insurgency in their own homes and communities.
Making the commendation earlier today, Vice President, Prof. Yemi
Osinbajo, SAN, noted that even though the insurgents still create a sense of
fear, many Nigerians are aware and are “doing their bit to accommodate the
IDPs. He said on its part the federal government is also committed to many of
the initiatives put in place to address the situation of the North-East region
of the country.
Although there are economic challenges currently in the country, Prof.
Osinbajo said the Buhari administration is determined to restore
the infrastructure, de-mine farmlands and make the affected
communities safe and habitable again.
Some of the initiatives in place include the Safe Schools Initiative,
Victims Support Fund, VSF, Presidential Initiative on North East, PINE, among
others. Those initiatives are now structured under the Presidential Committee
on the North-East Initiatives, PCNI, for which President Muhammadu Buhari has
appointed General T.Y. Danjuma (rtd) to lead.
According to the Vice President, the federal government is deeply
committed to the recovery and rehabilitation of the North-Eastern region and
will require the continued support of the United Nations in the effort.
Speaking today during a meeting with a delegation from the United
Nations High Commission for Refugees, UNHCR, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja,
the Vice President commended the UN agency for its assistance so far.
“We are looking forward to much more assistance from the UNHCR,” Prof.
Osinbajo told the team led by Mr. Volker Turk, the Assistant High Commissioner,
while also acknowledging that the agency has done a lot. But he added that
there is still a long way to go.
Observing that the situation especially with the IDPs in the North-East
presented an enormous ongoing challenge, the VP said the UNHCR
is “peculiarly equipped to deal with this kind of situation.”
“We urge the UNHCR to work with us as closely as possible on the
resettlement and rehabilitation of IDPs,” the VP said.
In his remarks, Mr. Turk while offering the government the continued
collaboration of the UN agency, stated that it is the aim of the UNHCR to
support and assist the Nigerian government on how to create the space for IDPs'
return to their communities with safety, dignity and sustainability.
Also today the Vice President received a delegation from the Nigerian
Association of Nephrologists led by its president, Prof. B.L Salako. The
association requested that the federal government should assist in the
provision of drugs for victims of kidney disease and also work with the
group to standardize dialysis treatment and kidney transplants in the country.
The Vice President responded stating the importance of nephrology in
medical practice and expressed government’s readiness to explore options on how
to make the drugs readily available. He lamented that there are people who even
don’t know they need dialysis, while many others die because they could not
afford the treatment. The VP said the Buhari administration will work with the
association to address this situation.
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