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By Philip Nwosu
It was a joyful moment for many internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Lagos recently, as the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Logistics Command deployed its medical team to attend to the needs of the refugees free of charge.
The Air Force also donated drugs worth millions of naira and treated nets that repel mosquitoes and prevent malaria to the premises of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Lagos, where they were handed over to the IDPs.
Over 500 IDPs and their children thronged the premises of the UNHCR from different parts of Lagos and presented themselves to the NAF medical team, led by Air Commodore Harold Onyechi, Director of Humanitarian Services, NAF. All the IDPs benefitted from the free drugs and nets.
The IDPs expressed happiness that succour had come to them, especially as they said they had spent many years in Lagos unacknowledged by government officials or agencies.
One of the IDPs, identified as Zacharia Matthew, told Daily Sun that they fled the North East when their abode in Mubi came under attack from Boko Haram terrorists.
He said for the period they had been in Lagos, he and the others had been on their own, catering to their own needs and living in a makeshift apartment.
Another IDP, who was identified as Lekshi David, said she fled Adamawa State in 2014 following an attack by the terror group.
A relative that was already settled in Lagos advised her to relocate from the war-torn area.
Lekshi, who had two children with her, said the third child was at home and, since 2014, when she fled Adamawa, she has not set her eyes on her husband.
She told newsmen: “At present, we pass the night in a makeshift apartment in Festac Town area and that is where I have been since I arrived in this state. I do not have any job; I resort to begging as a means of survival, and from the little I get from begging I am able to take care of my three children.”
Indeed, the displaced persons in Lagos, it was gathered, have not got any kind of government attention, unlike their counterparts in other parts of the country.
The Air Force said the exercise was part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR), noting that comprehensive medical care would be provided for the IDPs in Lagos.
According to NAF, the core of the two-day medical outreach was to make quality medical attention reach the IDPs.
Daily Sun learnt that over 500 IDPs from Festac Town, Satellite and Ajah camps in Lagos were subjected to medical screening and treatment conducted by personnel from NAF Medical Services.
The theme of the programme was “We care, we share.” It was launched by the Federal Commissioner in charge of the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCRMI), Hajiya Sadiya Farouq, along with the Acting Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago, Garth Lamsee.
At the commencement of the exercise, Hajiya Farouq commended the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadiq Abubakar, and the Chief of Medical Services, Air Vice Marshal S.M. Shinkafi, for taking the lead in providing medical care for IDPs across Nigeria.
She said: “The Nigerian Air Force is not only living up to its constitutional responsibility of securing our land, airspace and overall territorial integrity, but also engaging in humanitarian assistance to our persons of concern.
“Plans are in earnest to ensure that the IDPs are resettled as soon as possible in their home communities. There are also plans to equip them with skills, so that those that might not wish to be voluntarily relocated to their states when it is time, would have a viable means of livelihood.”
Explaining the efforts of the commission at ensuring the wellbeing of IDPs, Farouq said the commission was conversant with the current problems of internal displacement in the North-East and the attendant issues faced by these persons of concern in the areas of health, shelter, food and education, among others.
She said: “It is, therefore, one of the major policy drives of this government, to not only ensure that all persons of concern are properly catered for, but also proffer durable solutions, which encompasses resettlement and return of IDPs to their previous places of abode.
“This medical intervention is an important activity in a series being carried out in collaboration with NAF and is expected to be a continuous exercise, involving more IDPs in this zone.”
Most of the IDPs at the outreach received diagnosis in different areas, including eye test, dental checks, antenatal matters, general outpatient services, laboratory services and outpatient pharmacy.
Earlier, Lamsee donated some consumables to the IDPs on behalf of his country, explaining that he felt a moral responbility to make a contribution towards better welfare for the IDPs.
