The Police Officers Wives Association (POWA), on Thursday, donated relief materials to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp in Uhogua Community in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo.
Speaking at the camp, National President of POWA, Hajiya Asta Idris, said the gesture was to cushion the hardship, which the IDPs were experiencing.
The president who is also the wife of the Inspector General of Police, said “as mothers who feel the pain and impact of your displacement from your homes, we owe you a duty to visit you and put smiles on your faces”.
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She commended Edo Government for ensuring that the IDPs were well catered for in the camp.
“It is my hope and prayer that more Nigerian citizens and institutions of government will make more commitment towards alleviating the sufferings of people living in the IDP camps,” she said.
Earlier, Edo Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, commended the humanitarian work being done by the association across Nigeria.
Obaseki represented by his Special Adviser on Special Duties, Hon. Yakubu Gowon, said the state government would support the effort of the Federal Government to defeat terrorism in Nigeria.
He said this would be done by ensuring that the state made the stay of the IDPs in Edo comfortable through the provision of adequate structure.
Obaseki called on stakeholders to join forces with both the state and Federal Government to assist IDPs to recover from the trauma of terrorism and foster their rehabilitation and reintegration into the society.
“I believe in the possibility of solving our common challenges through concerted efforts by all stakeholders and from such effort comes great benefits to enable us get a better society”.
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The coordinator of the camp Pastor Solomon Folonrusho, thanked POWA for the visit and donations, saying it had lifted the spirit of the over 2000 members in the camp.
“We thank the Federal Government and the Edo Government for their continued support for the camp, as it has gone a long way to keep the camp alive and moving”.
He added that the IDPs in the camp love education, noting that not less than 30 of them were already in different Universities.
“About 25 has just gained admission into the University, six out of the 25 are to study Medicine and Surgery, eight are to study Nursing and Midwifery, seven for Law and other courses, we solicit continuous support,” he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that items donated include 100 mattresses, 100 pillow cases, 100 bags of rice, 100 buckets, 10 cartoons of washing soap, 100 cartoons of bathing soap, 10 cartoons of body cream and two bales of clothes. (NAN
