The Plateau Humanitarian Vanguard, a social-cultural organization in the North Central zone, praised President Bola Tinubu and Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu, for their timely responses to the attacks on communities in Plateau State.
According to a report Gistlover on Christmas Eve, gunmen in the Plateau State local government areas of Bokkos and Barkin Ladi set fire to roughly 221 houses, killing over 100 people.
Edu was immediately given the go-ahead by President Tinubu to take all necessary steps to help the victims of the impacted communities.
Remember that the President instructed the “Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation and other relevant agencies to work with the Plateau State Government to deliver immediate humanitarian relief to the affected communities” in a statement released on December 28, 2023, by Mohammed Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation.
As a result, Edu oversaw the distribution of food and non-food relief supplies to the Plateau State attack victims on Wednesday.
The Minister was on the ground to coordinate Humanitarian Responses as instructed by President Tinubu. She also toured impacted villages for an on-the-spot assessment of the areas with her colleague from the Ministry of Defence and Service Chiefs.
The group responded to this development by saying in a statement on Wednesday night that while these humanitarian efforts may not be able to make up for the lives lost, they “can give the people the sense of belonging and ameliorate the momentous pains occasioned by the unfortunate attacks” in the face of hunger and unhappiness brought on by the attacks.
The president of Plateau Humanitarian Vanguard, Jonah Pam, stated in a statement released on Wednesday that the impacted communities now have hope because of the prompt reaction.
“These quick humanitarian interventions mean a lot to the people. A lot is already happening to the displaced people and we believe that any little support from government, individuals and organisations would go a long way to cushion the pains.
“We believe that no amount of humanitarian interventions can bring back our loved ones, but we also know this is not the first of such attacks in the past. What we normally get from the government at the centre is a well-crafted and rehearsed press statement, condemning the attack. And it ends there.
“At least, the coming of Tinubu as President of Nigeria has shown them how things should be done in this situation.
“We also pray that it does not end in providing humanitarian interventions. The security agencies, especially the military, should live above board and get the perpetrators to pay for the heinous crime. It is a genocide against our people and we would not like it to sleep, as usual,” the statement read in part.
