The President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, has reacted to the latest report by the Human Rights Watch alleging sexual harassment of girls and women at the Internally Displaced Camps, IDPs, by security operatives and some officials.
Saraki said the increasing social injustices like rape, diversion of food items and other corruption related cases within the Internally Displaced Persons’ camps are inexcusable.
Recall that Human Rights Watch, Monday, released a report accusing Nigerian officials of sexually exploiting women and girls at the IDPs.
President Muhammadu Buhari had ordered the Inspector General of Police, IGP, Mr. Ibrahim Idris and the affected state governors to commence immediate investigations into the allegation.
The Senate President on Tuesday pledged the cooperation of the Senate to ensure quick passage of bills to help address the crisis in IDPs camps across the country.
Saraki said this when a delegation of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees led by Mrs. Angele Dikongue-Atangana visited him at the National Assembly, Abuja.
He said, “It is disheartening and heartless when you see children with cases of malnutrition and you know there can be speedy recovery; when you read and hear of cases of corruption in the supplies of food items, when you see cases of malnutrition and mortality in the IDPs; when the necessary drugs and nutritional items are provided with the necessary food items.
“There are committees of the Senate saddled with the responsibility of tackling poverty and its related challenges,” Saraki said, pledging the cooperation of the Senate to work with the House of Representatives in the passage of legislation that would enhance the welfare of IDPs.
Saraki told Atangana that the fact that the Senate had no committee on the IDPs did not mean the upper chamber of the National Assembly was unmindful of its legislative duties towards the IDPs.
He, however, pledged the readiness of the National Assembly to cooperate with the UNHCR in addressing the challenges facing the IDPs in the Middle Belt region of Nigeria.
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