By Titus Atondu, Makurdi
Victims Support Funds (VSF), following the continued attacks on Benue Farmers, will expend over one billion naira in six local government areas affected by insurgency in the Benue State.
The benefitting local government areas include, Guma, Gwer-West, Konshisha, Logo and Agatu.
Team leader and founder of VSF, former Minister of Defence Major Theopilus Danjuma, Mrs. Nana Tanko, also said another N180 million will be spent on economic empowerment programs for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).
She said the foundation has designed programmess that will respond to the needs of the people, intimating that it will cover seven strategic areas of food distribution, health and medical care, pschyo-socio support and mental living, safety and shelter, access to water, hygiene, and support for primary health care centres.
Mrs. Nana stated this on Tuesday at the flag off of distribution of relief materials to Internally Displaced Persons’ camp in Ortese, Guma local government area.
The team leader, who said she went round the six local governments, lamented the massive destruction of infrastructures in the State.
She urged the Federal government to take steps to reconstruct the damaged communities so that the people can return to ancestral homes and engage in farming.
“The Victims Support Funds was established in 2014 to cater for victims of terrorism in Nigeria. It is to complement the Federal Government effort in taking care of victims of terrorism.
“Terrorism has spread to the North Central that is why we are intervening. This is the third time we are doing so in the State
“It is the first of its kind in comprehensive humanitarian program in Nigeria democracy. The food items should be able to reach within 6 months over 100,000 people,” Mrs. Nana said.
Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, lauded the VSF for the intervention and reminded the Federal Government to be alive to her responsibility of securing the lives of Nigerians.
“Those in Abuja are not human beings. Do they have blood flowing through their systems at all? How can they allow over 1.5 million to be in IDP camps? Imagine over 22, 000 people staying in a camp under the rain and sun,” Ortom fumed.