Peter Obi has called on the federal government to urgently address the plight of internally displaced persons after visiting a camp housing over 1,000 IDPs in Sokoto State, describing conditions there as distressing.
Camp visit caps two-day tour
Obi’s visit to the Ramin Kura IDP Camp in Sokoto North Local Government Area on Monday marked the conclusion of a two-day engagement across the state, during which he held consultations with various groups on insecurity, out-of-school children, poverty, youth unemployment and drug abuse.
Describing what he witnessed at the facility, Obi said residents were living in severely overcrowded conditions. “I found it particularly distressing to see Nigerians crammed into makeshift shelters and thatched rooms, with some rooms housing as many as 10 persons,” he said, adding that the camp lacks adequate toilets, a primary healthcare centre and a school for children.
Calls for accountability
Obi argued that the displacement crisis was a national responsibility. “As long as even one Nigerian lives in an IDP camp, we are all internally displaced,” he said, urging the government to improve conditions in camps while resolving the security issues that forced residents from their homes.
He noted the visit was his 12th to an IDP camp in Nigeria, pledging continued support for displaced persons “for as long as it takes.”
Obi also renewed his call for the president and other political office holders to spend their holidays within Nigeria. “So that they can see first-hand the difficulties faced by these fellow Nigerians, whose vulnerability has been worsened by the failure of government to prioritise critical areas of development,” he said.
He closed by appealing to relevant government agencies to act swiftly. “Let me seize this opportunity to again call on the government and the relevant agencies to immediately look into the plight of these citizens and address their pressing needs,” Obi said.
