By Haruna Gimba
The Justice Development and Peace Commission (JDPC), an NGO of the Catholic Archdiocese of Jos, has constructed 10 Ventilated Improved Pit(VIP), latrines and two wells for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), taking refuge at Ban community in Hiepang, Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau.
Presenting the keys of the facilities to the IDPs on Thursday, Mrs. Benedicta Daber, JDPC Coordinator, said that the gesture was in tune
with its Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), initiative.
Daber said that the gesture was prompted by the urge to improve sanitation and hygiene at the camp, and to also ease the sufferings of the IDPs in accessing potable water.
She explained that the gesture was facilitated by the Emergency Preparedness and Response Team (EPRT), department of the organisation with support from Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD).
Inaugurating the facilities, Most Rev. Ignatius Kaigama, the Apostolic Administrator of the archdiocese, said that the gesture was timely.
Represented by Rev. Fr. Anthony Fom, a board member of JDPC, Kaigama commended the donors for the gesture, adding that it would further make the environment cleaner.
“What we are doing today is our own way of ameliorating your sufferings; we believe it will cushion the effects of the attacks that
made you left your places of abode.
“We decided to make these facilities available to enable you promote sanitation and hygiene even as you temporarily stay here. This might not be enough, but it is our little way of saying we also share in the pains you are currently passing through,” he said.
Kaigama prayed that the security situation improves to enable the displaced persons return to their original homes.
Recieving the keys to the facilities, Mr Irimiya Maget, Chairman of the camp, thanked JDPC for the gesture and many other assistances it had rendered toward ensuring a better life for the IDPs. He, however, called on government to intenaify efforts toward restoring peace to the affected areas to enable them return to their
homes.
“As you all know, 90 per cent of us are farmers, and we can’t farm hereb it’s not our land. So, we want the government of the day ensurepeace so that we can return to our land and go back to our farms,” he said.
Health Reporters gathered that majority of the IDPs at Ban camp are persons who fled from Nghar community of Barkin Ladi, after the June 2018 attacks that claimed 200 lives and rendered many homeless.
NAN reports that JDPC has also constructed two wells in IDPs camps located in Bokkos Local Government area of the state.
