It was a cloudy afternoon on the 8th of October 2021 in Makurdi, Benue state, when Mbaiorga Winifred had just stepped out of her makeshift home.
The previous night’s heavy rain had dismantled her makeshift home, a series of mosquito nets combined in a “cave-like form” to provide shelter for her and her five children.
“I was busy fixing my “Ihia-wam”- all through the day after being drenched the previous night. The weather was not my challenge.” Mbaiorga said.
“Ihia-wam” means “my house” in the Tiv language.
She continued, “But I became terrified when I saw the cloud forming again. I knew my family, and I would be drenched again later that night.”
Since the incident, life has never been easy for Mbaiorga and her family.
A few years ago, she could do menial jobs at the camp to fend for his children, but her strength has failed her.
“Since October, I have been feeling a very sharp headache coupled with general weakness of the body. Worse still, I began emaciating, and my body worsens daily.”
Mbaiorga could not access any hospital even when some mobile health workers privately told her that she could have type II diabetes.
The Back Story
The 54-year-old mother of five was busy running to provide for his family when life took a turn in 2018 in the Tukura area of Guma local government, Benue state.
Narrating, Mbaiorga said, “It was reported a clash in the media, but it was never a clash; it was unprovoked, unplanned, and never envisioned.”
“Everything happened so fast in a particular twilight when we started hearing gunshots.”
“We thought it was just local hunters preparing their guns for hunting, but it kept increasing and approaching. Moreover, the sound was unfamiliar. Unlike the local guns, it sounded so real and sharp.”
“We later discovered they were Fulani herders who had come to take over our land.”
“That was how we started running, and there was no time to pick anything. How I managed to escape with my children, only God knows.”
“That night, over seventy persons were killed. That was the first time I witnessed mass burial and for my siblings.”
Different Ailments
Like Mbaiorga, several others were displaced across many communities like Tukura, Mbagen, Yelewata, etc, in Guma, Logo and Makurdi local governments of Benue State.
Msughshima Mary, 47, a native of yelewata community, also was displaced from Guma LG.
For months, she has felt pain in her abdomen, loss of appetite, and fatigue then her urine has turned dark.
She complained to Mr. Gabriel Yev, The camp chairman, but the Chairman is as handicapped as the rest of the inmates. Even though he suspected it could be hepatitis because he had once witnessed symptoms like this that was later tested to be hepatitis.
Udei, Regina, 40, is from Mbalagh, in Makurdi Local government of Benue state. She came to the camp in 2020 with four children.
According to her, since October, all her children have manifested several symptoms which she feels are related to diarrhea.
“At the moment, Isaac Udei, Mr eldest son, is feeling pain in his abdomen, and he’s vomiting, including bloating, nausea, fever, blood, and mucus in his stool.”
“We can only boil herbs. But it does not feel like the situation is being given the needed attention.” Udei, helplessly narrated.
Like every other IDP in Nigeria, Tse Yandev IDPs are plagued with poverty, malnutrition, overcrowding, poor living conditions, and inadequate health care.
Therefore, the International Organization for Migration also believes they are susceptible to infectious diseases such as malaria, diarrhea, and acute respiratory disorders and non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disorders in many IDPs in Nigeria.
Unfortunately, the number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Nigeria keeps increasing.
The increasing number of IDPs was primarily due to conflict and violence such as communal crisis, militancy, banditry, farmer-herder clashes, and Boko Haram terrorism.
Internally displaced persons were forced to leave their homes but still remain on their country’s border.
Nigeria reportedly has the third-highest number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Africa.
In 2020, the country accounted for over 2.7 million internally displaced people.
On the 19th of October, 2022, the IOM Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) reported that 254 people were displaced in Benue due to crime-related violence.
The Atlas Mobility Tracking also states that, in October 2022, DTM identified a 12.2 percent increase in IDPs compared to March 2022.
“Illegal Camp”
Among the twenty-seven (27) “recognized” IDPs camps with a population of over 2 million displaced persons across these camps in Benue state, the Tse yandev IDPs camp where Mbaiorga and over nine hundred (900) displaced persons stay is being captured as an “unofficial camp” by Emmanuel Shior, the Chairman, State Emergency Management Agency.
In an interview with this reporter, Shior disclosed that Tse yandev is an “illegal camp” because the government does not approve it.
“We asked them to move somewhere to Uikpan. That is where we know we can recognize and treat them like displaced persons. Otherwise, they are just community opportunists who want to ruin our state’s reputation by posing as IDPs.”
In his defense, the Chairman of the camp, Mr. Gabriel Yev claimed that the government was pushing them back to the bush where they ran away from.
“Even the Uikpan camp is not safe. We are still hearing the cases of killings there. He said.
He continued, “The government wants us out of sight because they feel we are embarrassing the state by staying in a conspicuous place.”
For somebody like Mbaiorga and others whose livelihood depends on asking for alms after being displaced for over four years, they could not have asked for anything more than a health care center.
“The Africa Data Hub Community Journalism Fellowship supported this report.”