Vice President Namadi Sambo on Thursday said the Federal Government was desirous of completing the relocation of Bakassi indigenes before August.
Sambo said this during a meeting of the Presidential Committee on Bakassi and Right of the Displaced People which he presided over at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
“The time to round off with the issue of Bakassi has become pertinent and everything must be concluded before August 2013,” he said.
Sambo said by the end of April, there must be a final report from the committee, taking into consideration the interest of the people of Bakassi.
He asked them to ensure that their recommendations also include the time frame.
“The time frame is to guide government on what to do as there is only four months left to conclude everything concerning the plight of the Bakassi people,” he added.
Earlier, the Deputy Governor of Cross River State and Chairman of the Presidential Committee, Efiok Cobham, thanked the Vice President and the Federal Government for their commitment to the Bakassi problem.
He stressed the need for the committee members to visit Bakassi and to ascertain the area where the people want to be resettled.
He explained that the Cameroon gendarmes, about a week ago, evicted about 2,000 Nigerians.
He added that Cross River State was currently harbouring another set of displaced people who lived in an open area with their families.
In her remark, Senator Ita Giwa also lamented the continuous harassment of Bakassi people by the Cameroon gendarmes.
She said the harassment was a breach of an agreement earlier reached on the Bakassi issue.
Meanwhile, Minister of Interior, Abba Moro, told journalists at the end of the meeting that Federal Government would take appropriate actions to protect the displaced Bakassi people against harassment.
No comments:
Post a Comment