Reps fume as Refugee Commission budgets N200m to resettle Borno, Bakassi IDPs10 yrs after judgement.

 

.We ‘ve over 1m  IDPs nationwide- Commissioner.

 

Jonas Ezieke, Abuja.

 

The House of Representatives Committee on Internally Displaced Persons and Refugees on Monday expressed surprise over the N200 million budgeted by the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons IDPs for the resettlement of IDPs from Borno in North-East and Bakassi Peninsula in Cross-River South-South regions

 

Chairman of the Committee Hon. Mahmud Jega at the budget defence session by the National Commissioner and officials of the agency said that many IDPs had remained unsettled after many years of displacement.

 

 

Noting that the agency had earmarked a a budget of N57 billion for its recurrent and capital expenditures, he said that the House is posed for a collaborative action to design a performing budget.

 

Expressing his disenchantment over the humanitarian crisis and the prevalence of Internally Displaced Persons IDPs camps, throughout each of the six geo-political zones he asked all the relevant agencies to synergize and tackle these issues.

 

He pointed out that the Humanitarian and Disaster Management Ministry was established by President Muhammadu Buhari to address humanitarian and other challenges and assured of support.

 

He said: “As the Committee which the Nigerian people place their trust, we are aware that the annual budget affects the life of every Nigerian individually or collectively”.

 

 

 

Presenting the 2021 budget review and 2022 budget proposal of the agency, National Commissioner of the agency  Suleiman Ibrahim said the agency is proposing an aggregate expenditure of N57,740, 63922 .00 billion for  personnel, overhead and capital project expenditure

 

 

She further hinted that N14,8797771.00 billion was approved by the National Assembly for the agency in 2021 out of which N8,516,122,331.17 billion was released for capital and overhead costs.

 

On what the budget intended to address, she said the agency has over 1 million internally displaced persons throughout the country owing to insurgency, banditry, conflicts and covid-19 disease

 

Most of the Committee members notably Hon Isiaka Ibrahim (Ogun, APC) and Hon.Dagomie Abianta (Rivers, PDP) reacted to the budget figures asking why the repeat of same line items on it.

 

The House Committee while adopting the proposed budget asked that the agency increases it annual budget to cater for integration of returnees from crisis ridden nation as Libya, Cameroon , Niger and other nations.

 

Responding the National Commissioner said the agency has zonal offices in all the six geo-political zones and new state offices in some states adding that they ‘ve done comprehensive audit of them all

 

It would be recalled that the International Court of Justice on October 10,2002 ceded the oil rich Bakassi peninsula to Cameroon.

 

The world court decided had that the boundary between Nigeria and Cameroon be delineated based on an Anglo-German agreement signed between them on March 11, 1913.