2027: Niger IDPs say returning to ancestral home is priority

Inmates of Internally Displaced Persons IDPs camps and homes in Niger State have said their priority is returning to their ancestral lands and not voting in the 2027 general elections.

Arewa PUNCH reports that there are several IDP camps in Niger State, particularly in Shiroro Local Government Area, where the Gwada camp, Erina camp and Zomba camp are located.

The population of the IDP inmates in these camps are estimated to be above 5000 and still counting, as terrorists, bandits and other outlaws continue to displace more people from their original native homes.

The inmates who spoke with our correspondent said some of them have spent over four years in the camps with the state government’s unfruitful promises of returning them to their ancestral lands.

A pastor of the Mountain of Fire Ministry, Livinus Danjuma, said he has been visiting the IDP camp in Gwada for three years as a missionary and observed that the population of the camp continues to grow as more people from places where the terrorists attack make their way there.

He narrated his observation to Arewa PUNCH: “My name is Livinus Danjuma, a resident of Chanchaga, and I reside in Minna. I have been coming here for three years now. I can tell you that life in the IDP camps is not easy, but God is helping us. The people here are just managing to survive. They manage virtually everything. Food and toilet facilities are major challenges for them

“The men want to work, but there is no work. The women and young girls too have nothing to do. They wake up every day to the same routine. Sometimes, they keep themselves happy by organising group play and dance. That is usually at night. One problem here, which is a major challenge, is the rate of unwanted pregnancy.

“I am not sure that the inmates in this IDP camp will be interested in participating in the 2027 general elections. Their major challenge is for the government to flush out the bandits from their ancestral lands and safely return them so that they can resume their normal lives.

“Some of them have told me that the government does not care about their existence and that is why they are still in the camps,” Danjuma said.

An inmate, Aisha Abdullahi, said she abandoned her education at the JSS 2 level after bandits invaded their homes in Allawa and chased everyone away. She said she lost five relatives, including her siblings, in the attack.

Abdullahi said she does not care about the 2027 elections, saying her only concern now is for the government to return her and others to their ancestral homes.

“My name is Aisha Abdullahi. I am from Allawa. I was in SS2 class when bandits attacked my home along with other homes and houses. They also attacked churches. They killed a lot of people, and many of our relatives are now scattered such that we cannot trace them today.

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“I have been in the Gwada IDP for the past three years, and life has stopped for me. Today, they want us to register so that we can vote in the 2027 general elections. That is not possible. That is not our priority.

“They abandoned us all these years to our fate. Thank God for the few missionaries, non-governmental organisations and charity foundations who routinely visit us and bring some relief to us in order to remain alive. Our welfare does not matter to the governments at the different levels.

“Now, it has come to election, and they want us to vote. I want you to tell them that for us, voting is not our priority. We want to go back to our homes, our land and continue our lives. How are we going to vote when we are not a part of the society? Let them first return us to our ancestral homes, drive those terrorists from our land and collect back our farms from them; then we can comfortably say we are part of the society.

“We have several challenges here. We are even afraid that the bandits may trace us to this place. The government and security agencies are not doing enough. It is not their ancestral home, and so they don’t know how we feel. We don’t sleep well. Many people have to share a bed space. Food is never enough. Many children have to run into the bush to relieve themselves. We, the young girls, go through hell during our menstrual cycle.

“How many things should I count, and you are here telling us about the 2027 election? The government can go to hell for all we care,” Abdullahi narrated in tears.

Mubarak Suleiman said he was done with his apprenticeship as a carpenter when the bandits drove him and his other family members, including their neighbours, from their ancestral land, and since then, he has had to abandon the training while waiting for when the government will return them to their homelands

“My name is Mubarak Suleiman. I managed to escape on that fateful night. I had trained as a carpenter, but I had to abandon the vocation and fled for my life. Since then, I have been in this IDP camp with nothing to do. The government no longer cares about us. It is only when they need us that they start looking for us. Now they want us to vote in 2027. So we are going to remain here till 2027?

“Anyway, I am not going to vote. Go and tell them that. We want them to return us to our homes so that we can return to our normal life; this one is not life,” Suleiman lamented.

The Niger State Commissioner for Homeland Security, Maurice Magaji, who responded to a WhatsApp message by Arewa PUNCH, said the state would ensure no IDP is disenfranchised

“Niger State will work with INEC to make sure no IDP is disenfranchised in the forthcoming general election, as it is the usual practice to work with the relevant election institution,” he said.

The Niger State INEC PRO, Shafiu Isa, who spoke with  Arewa PUNCH, assured the IDPs that the commission would ensure that they are not left out in the exercise.

“The commission is working seriously on the issue. As soon as we are ready, I will let you in on it,” he said.