Despite the plight victims of the Boko Haram insurgency, some top government officials unsympathetic to the sufferings, are said be to have syphoned the monies dedicated to alleviating the hardship imposed on the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) across the ravaged North-East, UNDP is claiming.
In a draft report by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the Presidential Initiative on the North East (PINE) has been accused of diverting funds meant for the upkeep of IDPs.
According to the report, out of the N8.352bn released to PINE in 2016, N6.326bn was spent, leaving a balance of N2.026bn.
Meanwhile, PINE has been accused of paying less attention to the critical needs of the IDPs, especially in areas of housing, food, education and healthcare, with majority of the resources spent on contracts that benefitted some public officials, including the suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation, (SGF), Babachir Lawal.
The report also showed that public procurement rules and extant federal financial guidelines were breached in the award of the contracts.
“Prima facie cases of conflict of interest were established and companies were fully paid as at a time they had not finished the assigned jobs, while kickbacks were made by some companies to others where public officials had clear interest”.
In the report, it was revealed that of the 249 trucks carrying 10, 000 metric tonnes of Maize released by the Federal Government to the IDPs, 65 were diverted but were later recovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) after the Senate Committee report was made public.
“The camps were struggling to accommodate the increasing number of displaced people, who found themselves subject to unhealthy living conditions. Many children were malnourished, as adequate provisions were not made to feed them”.
The evaluation, which was done from 2015 to June 2017 also focused on human rights protection issues, including sexual and gender-based violence, access to justice, community policing and capacity of law enforcement officers for timely response to crises, among others.
Still, on the report, findings showed that both the Federal and State Government did not maximize resources to protect the rights and welfare of the IDPs. Efforts by the Federal Government to push back Boko Haram insurgents, led to human rights violations by security agencies.
It was however concluded in the report, that there has been an improvement in the security situation in the North Eastern part of Nigeria.
Recommendations from the Report
1. To prosecute and punish all persons and organisations responsible for diverting food meant for IDPs and create more transparency around the distribution of food for displaced persons.
2. Consider the establishment of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to enable all stakeholders- perpetrators, victims and survivors to openly discuss the insurgency and how the wounds can be healed.
3. Consider a comprehensive framework on Transitional Justice, to address human rights violations and other concerns generated by the insurgency in the North East.
4. Urgently consider the establishment of State Police and Local Policing, through the appropriate amendment of the Constitution and relevant laws.
5. Enact Federal and State legislation on witness and victim protection.
6. Maintain facilities for prompt investigation and prosecution of offenders and use the International Criminal Court mechanism and other international frameworks for the prosecution of offenders.
7. Recruit more personnel for the Police and Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps.
8. It added that human rights training and skill-building needs of armed security agencies should be assessed.
9. Human rights should be included in their curricula, so as to increase the awareness and protection of human rights. Continued education on human rights should also be introduced for serving officers.
