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From Sola Ojo, Kaduna
Gwagwada is an ancient community in Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State. A 30 minutes drive from Dutse town, off- Kaduna-Abuja highway, the agrarian community has an unpleasant story to tell.
Year in and out, the community and its inhabitants have become an easy prey for bandits and other criminal elements ravaging the former capital of Northern Nigeria, causing many to flee from their abodes.
Some displaced persons have also fled from nearby communities to Gwagwada. They came in droves from Shoshokwa, Kakanmai, Five –Thirty, Toko, Kutifa, Kajari, Kugo, Kugosi, ugwo, Kajare, Shepe, Ungofa, Gwasinu, Angwan Turei and Akunako.
Today, the community has become a huge refuge for internally dislodged persons, many of whom had lost everything, including their beloved relatives, their farmlands and their livestock to the frightening wave of death.
When Daily Sun visited the community recently, their displacement was stark clear. The people looked pale and bitter and seemed hunted by the tragic circumstances of the sudden relocation and displacement.
Sharing his unpleasant experience, the Counsellor representing Gwagwada ward, Sunday Barde, told Daily Sun of how he and his son were kidnapped in 2018, noting that the memory was still hurting and hunting them.
“Since 2018, we have been dealing with kidnapping in our community. My son and I were kidnapped and we paid N1.7 million to secure our freedom. We thank God for the gift of life, but so many people were not that lucky. They paid with their lives” he recalled.
He observed that life in the camp was not challenging , while identifying a number of critical problems bedeviling the stay.
“Our people were before now without potable water. We were drinking from the river, the same river together with animals, thus leading to water-borne diseases ” he said.
He however admitted that a Jos-based non-governmental organisation, Transfer of Appropriate Sustainable Technology and Expertise (TASTE-Nigeria), with the support of the American government has been supportive, adding that they have been providing them with clean and safe water.
“I am calling on the government to support the community with security men in addition to self-efforts to secure the area from kidnappers and other sophisticated criminals, who have prevented our farmers from going to their farms.
“Sarkin Gadani is also cooperating with us, by giving us lands where we are currently living “, he said.
A traditional leader who was among the displaced persons, Danlamin Galadima, lamented life has not been the same for him after several bandits had attacked his community, some months ago.
“Since these bandits chased us out of our village under Gadani, our lives have not been the same as we wondered about and slept wherever night meets with us. That was how it was until we got to Gwagwada”, he lamented.
Sabo Madami, who hails from Shoshokwa village under Kakamai area recounted his experience, saying that he was kidnapped months ago and only got back his freedom after the payment of N300.000.
According to his narration, he was forced to vacate his home after another gang of bandits besieged their community soon after his return, abducting people at random for ransom.
“When they kidnapped me, I was held for a week before we could raise N300,000. As soon as I was freed and returned home, another gang started coming. That was when we decided to seek refuge here because we have sold all we have to pay the ransom.
“As we speak, there is no one remaining in our village. Nobody is there. All of us from my village have moved here and the same applies to other villages affected by the madness. We have to abandon our farms and our remaining animals to be here. It is a terrible experience”, he said.
“The old man you see lying down up there does almost everything inside his small makeshift room, since bandits chased him out of his home. I don’t know his name or any of his family member but, all I can tell you, is that all is not well with him because he spends most of his time in this uncomfortable environment”, a lady who spoke in confidence held.
Just recently, Kaduna State government developed a document called “Kaduna Social Protection Policy”. It is designed to provide relief for poor , the vulnerable and for individuals like the people in this camp.
According to that document, one percent of the State’s internally generated revenue (IGR) (though the state government is saying one percent of its annual budget) has been earmarked for the intervention.
According to Kaduna Social Protection Accountability Coalition (KADSPAC), the state government’s social register has captured well over 2 million poor and vulnerable individuals from over 500,000 households.Whether those who have been displaced are well captured in this register is not clear to many.
Luckily, TASTE-Nigeria, in partnership with Nigeria Early Recovery Initiative, NERI programme has reduced the burden of these vulnerable Nigerians, by providing them solar-powered boreholes, toilets and street lights.
The Project Officer, TASTE Nigeria, Jonathan Makan said the NERI programme has built the capacity of 48 community leaders on WASH, SDGs, Nutrition and COVID-19.
The program has provided three solar-powered boreholes have been provided with 210,000 litres capacity in total, he added.
Also provided, he stated, were 12 V I P toilets reticulated with water as well as 12 draw- off points each, with four taps in each of the four locations, bringing the total to 48 taps for easy access.
The District Head of Gwagwada who spoke through the Village Head, Luka Saure, appreciated the interventions, especially given the influx of displaced persons to the community.
Given the rationale behind the choice of the projects, Makan said, “The projects are initiated here because of the influx of people who were displaced from their abode by the bandits. These facilities will help them prevent some of the health challenges that are already coming up within the communities.
“As an organisation, TASTE envisaged a poor community and the vulnerable being supported with water and sanitation, which we have been doing for 21 years now. The communities in need write to us as an organisation for us to reach out to them with the provision of boreholes and toilet facilities. For each of our project in these communities, one borehole goes with one toilet”, Makan said.
