NEMA Distributes Relief Materials To Plateau-Attacked Communities

NEMA Distributes Relief Materials To Plateau-Attacked Communities

By Aisha Musa

The National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, on Saturday distributed assorted relief materials to victims of recent attacks in Mangu Local Government of Plateau.

Mustapha Habib, NEMA director-general, said while handing over the materials, that the agency would conduct an on-the-spot assessment of the communities when peace returned.

Mr Habib, who was represented by NEMA North Central Zonal Director Alh. Bashir Garga, urged the people to embrace peace and shun violence.

The D-G said that it was sad, sickening, and demoralising, that the attacks kept reoccurring in the state.

He described Mangu as one of the most enterprising local government areas (LGAs), on the Plateau.

“This is sad, if this had happened elsewhere, I wouldn’t be bugged or surprised, but an enterprising community like Mangu LGA? It is really sad.

“If you look at the present economic quagmire we found ourselves in this country, it is foolhardy for anybody to embark on killing one another.

“No human being lives in isolation; we need each other to grow and fulfill our destinies.

“Some of you might think what I am saying is outside the mandate of my organisation, but you know that we have a responsibility to prevent disasters if we can,” Mr Habib said.

He said that NEMA offered itself to the various state governments under the Disaster Risk Reduction Initiative, to contribute by way of research and making sure people lived peacefully with one another.

“When normalcy is presumed to have returned, when we have assurances from the security operatives on ground, we will, in collaboration with the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), go to these places and have on-the-spot assessments to ascertain the causes of the unfortunate incidents.

“My organisation is empowered in the realm of disaster reduction to avoid collusion between hazards and vulnerabilities.

“When you have hazards in place and the people are vulnerable, it falls on us to make sure the two don’t meet,” he said.

He listed the food and non-food items distributed to include 2,832 bags of 10kg rice, 2,832 bags of 10kg beans, and 2,832 bags of 10kg garri.

Others included 100 kegs of 20 litres vegetable oil, 100 kegs of palm oil (20 litres), 1,000 pieces of mattresses, 1,500 pieces of mosquito nets, 1,500 pieces of nylon mats, and 1,500 pieces of wax prints, among many others.

Markus Artu, Transition Implementation chairman, Mangu, lauded the Federal Government through NEMA, for coming to the aid of the victims of unwarranted attacks.

According to Artu, nobody benefits from a crisis situation, and therefore prayed for enduring peace in Mangu, Plateau, and Nigeria in general.

The chairman said that the government was doing everything possible to cushion the sufferings of those who had been affected, and to ensure that they returned to their ancestral homes.

We appreciate all of you who have worked tirelessly to see that our people benefit from this intervention.

“But let me also say that, as a government, we are committed to restoration of peace so that our people can go back and engage in creating their own source of livelihood,” he added.

Sunday Abdu, Plateau SEMA executive secretary, said that the agency was on alert and aware of the problems on ground.

Mr Abdu stated that SEMA was synergising with NEMA and security agencies, to work out the modalities of assisting the people to go back to their ancestral homes.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the beneficiaries, cutting across different ethnic groups and religions, lauded the Federal Government for the kind gesture.

NAN