Cold Awakening for Yelwa-Shendam IDPs

The Lafia Municipal Area Council had on September 1, 2022 demolished the Nasarawa State Internally Displaced Persons camp established about 20 years ago by ex-Governor Abdullahi Adamu in the Shinge area of the state capital, thereby ejecting the displaced persons caught in the web of the Yelwa-Shendam crisis of 2004, reports Igbawase Ukumba

In 2004, the clash between Muslims and Christians communities in the commercial town of Yelwa-Shendam in the neighbouring Plateau State had forced some inhabitants of the town to flee to Lafia, the capital of Nasarawa State, as Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). 

Yelwa-Shendam had made its mark as an important commercial centre and was often described as a market town, roughly 20 kilometres away from Shendam town, the headquarters of Shendam Local Government Area of Plateau State. With a majority of Jarawa, Jukun, Goemai, Hausa and Fulani ethnic nationalities, the two major religious outbreaks that led to the death of many had crippled the town as an economic hub in the southern Plateau.

The Yelwa-Shendam atrocity eventually led to the declaration of a state of emergency on the Plateau by the then President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Be that as it may, when the first wave of displaced persons from the Yelwa-Shendam crisis poured into Nasarawa State in March 2004, the then governor of the state; now national chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Abdullahi Adamu, took immediate steps to assist the casualties.

Hitherto, the then governor of the Nasarawa State provided the casualties with basic relief materials and temporary shelter. This was even as Senator Adamu did whatever was necessary to reassure them that it was not in the character of the state to turn its back on those who needed its help.

Nevertheless, in a statewide broadcast to citizens of the state when the wave of the displaced persons from the Yelwa-Shendam crisis poured into the state in 2004, the then Governor Abdullahi Adamu said Nasarawa State was truly overwhelmed by the pitiable sight of the helpless men, women and children in the state, insisting that It was impossible for anyone who saw them not to be touched by their plight. He lamented that the victims were sucked into the crisis and have been ruined, hence had lost everything they ever called their own.

“They have lost their homes, their farms and other means of livelihood. They now live at the mercy of Good Samaritans. We share their loss; we feel their pain. However, as bad as their situation is, we must thank God that they were lucky to have escaped with their lives. Hundreds of other people did not. They died in the disturbances. We commit their souls into the hands of the almighty God for a peaceful, eternal rest,” Adamu prayed.

The former Nasarawa State governor continued in his statewide broadcast that the Yelwa-Shendam disturbances had nothing to do with Nasarawa State, as the state was not in any way involved in them. But they were purely the internal affairs of its sister state.

But, Nasarawa State had been drawn into the disturbances by reason of geography. Therefore, the displaced persons had become Nasarawa’s problem as much as they were the primary responsibility of their home state government (Plateau). 

It was a burden Nasarawa State bore as good neighbours. Difficult as the situation was, Senator Abdullahi Adamu then had only one choice before him; and that choice was to rise to the crisis forced on Nasarawa at that time.

Adamu consequently responded to the task saying, “the displaced persons have run to us for succour. This is their hour of need. We must be there for them. We cannot turn them away. We cannot deny them the milk of our kindness. We must share our food, no matter how little, with them. We must spare our clothes so they too can cover their own bodies. We must share our sleeping space with them and bear the inconveniences with grace.”

The then governor concluded that the Yelwa-Shendam Displaced Persons had become Nasarawa State’s challenge and responsibility. According to him, “it takes courage to take on a challenge and it takes commitment to discharge responsibilities. Let us not be found wanting in this great test of our humanity.”

However, about 20 years ago, Nasarawa State might have been, either deliberately or intentionally, found wanting in that great test of humanity as the state had allegedly demolished the Shinge IDPs camp established by Senator Abdullahi Adamu, and consequently ejected the Yelwa-Shendam displaced persons out of their abode, not minding the torrential rains been experienced at that moment.

Perhaps, in an interview with THISDAY recently over the demolition of the Shinge IDPs camp by the authorities of the Lafia Municipal Council Area, the Executive Secretary of the Nasarawa State Emergency Management Agency (NASEMA) Mr. Zachary Allu Maga, welcomed the demolition scenario that Nasarawa State did not have any displaced persons in Shinge area of Lafia. 

He maintained that any person that was there was a trespasser; and, therefore, was on his or her own.

When the NASEMA Executive Secretary was reminded that the camp was opened by ex-Governor Abdullahi Adamu in 2004 for the Yelwa-Shendam crisis’ victims, he responded that the same governor who opened the camp had as well closed the camp. Insisting that the state government had explained times without number to people that it was not an IDPs camp.

Maga asked: “What are the Yelwa-Shendam people still doing there?. They are here doing business, then you say you are IDPs. Twenty years after, what are you still doing at IDPs camp?”

Be that as it may, on a cold Thursday morning of September 1, 2022, authorities of the Lafia Municipal Council Area, led by the secretary of the council, Mr. Mohammed Haliru, arrived the Shinge IDPs camp with bulldozers, in company of stern looking security operatives to carry out the demolition exercise.

Speaking to journalists on that fateful day, the council secretary explained: “The main aim of coming to this refugees camp this morning is to fulfill this assignment given to us. Before now, there has been an agreement between the state government and the local government that the refugees that are residing here should be evacuated, because the place was not given to them permanently. It was given to them on temporary basis.

“Now that government has a mission to this place, government decided that they should leave this place. We sat with them almost trice and they all agreed that they are going to pack and leave the place. Last week the Nasarawa Urban Development Board (NUDB) came and earmarked the area, they resisted. So the act of resistance exhibited by the refugees actually provoked government. This is the reason why we came here in full force.”

The IDPs who were devastated by the act of the Lafia local authorities lamented that they have lived in the camp for close to twenty years when they were displaced by the Yelwa-Shendam atrocity in 2004. They went down memory lane on how the land was donated to then as an IDPs camp by the late Emir of Lafia, Isa Mustapha Agwai, alongside the then governor of the state, Senator Abdullahi Adamu.

Narrating the ordeal of their abrupt sacking from the IDPs camp, an elder with two wives and four children who was also displaced to Lafia from Yelwa-Shendam crisis, Yakubu Musa, was sober that the people of Nasarawa State had insisted that they (Yelwa-Shendam IDPs) most vacate the land for them of which they don’t know their offences.

“However, they are claiming that we are robbers, we are kidnappers. They are alleging that we are the people harbouring kidnappers in Lafia. But we told them that no member of our community has ever been arrested as a kidnap suspect. None of these allegations have been established on any member of our community. These are mere accusations, but they have passed the strenuous verdict on us; the displaced persons.

“It is unfortunate that all stakeholders in the state have turned deaf ears to the unverified accusations leveled against us, but had all concluded that the displaced persons should be ejected from the camp; moreso that kidnapping has been a nightmare in Nigeria,” the displaced Musa spoke soberly.

The devastated Musa insisted that all accusations on criminalities leveled against the Yelwa-Shendam IDPs were unfounded because there was no case file in the police indicating the arrest of anybody from the camp over any alleged criminal activities. He maintained that they have been living peacefully with their host community and other neighbours.

Musa recounted that the IDPs had since been neglected and left alone mending tents in the camp without support from neither government nor any spirited individual, but still there was no sympathy on them than the authorities to subject them to yet another severe hardship.

Musa concluded: “By and large, we have no where to go because in Yelwa-Shendam too our houses were demolished. All our assets were destroyed in the wake of the crisis in 2004. Nevertheless, we are calling on the government of Nasarawa State to come to our aid. The state government should know that Nasarawa and Plateau were once together as a state until they were divided later. Therefore, it will be inhuman for Plateau State indigenes to become outcasts in Nasarawa State at the moment.

For Mariam Sani; a displaced mother of six children, it was made known to them that they were going to vacate the camp, which they all agreed to leave the land for the government. However, Mariam was shocked that the IDPs were recently given only a two weeks notice to vacate the camp.

 Based on the short notice to vacate the camp, the displaced mother of six children however said the IDPs had asked the Lafia Municipal Council Area authorities for extension of deadline to enable them look for alternative accomodations, because they were yet to get one.

She said: “However, they came again shortly that the two weeks notice given to us has expired. However, we still pleaded with them that we were yet to get where to put our heads and begged for extension of deadline, but they insisted that we are to leave the camp latest by the following day. They then told us that they will be coming back to force anyone who did not leave by 12 noon out of the camp.

“Alas! By 6:00am the following day we saw the enforcers arrived when many of us were still in bed, bulldozing every structure in the camp. The action has had untold devastation on the displaced persons. The sacking of the IDPs has reminded me of the Yelwa-Shendam atrocity, hence apart from water, I have not found food into my stomach since the episode.

” To be frank, the Yelwa-Shendam crisis did not affect us devastatingly as compared to what the authorities of Nasarawa State did to us at the moment.”

Mariam lamented that the concern of the Yelwa-Shendam displaced persons in Nasarawa State was that they did not have anywhere to call a shelter, and even if they had found a place, she noted that they didn’t even have the finances to foot the bills.

“We are therefore appealing to government at all levels and spirited individuals to come to our assistance,” Mariam begged.

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Before now, there has been an agreement between the state government and the local government that the refugees that are residing here should be evacuated, because the place was not given to them permanently. It was given to them on temporary basis