By Ndahi Marama, Maiduguri
The North East Development Commission, NEDC has presented a cheque of N2 billion for onward distribution to over 800,000 traders whose goods and services were destroyed following the February 26, 2023 fire inferno that erupted at the Maiduguri Monday Market, Borno state.
Presenting the cheque to Governor Babagana Zulum during a courtesy call on him at the Government House on Monday, the Chairman of the commission, Major General Paul Tarfa (rtd), and the Managing Director, Ambassador Goni Alkali said, they were in the state to first introduce the newly constituted members of the Board that were appointed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Secondly, to inspect some ongoing and completed projects executed by NEDC, and to also identify other areas of intervention such as the Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Resettlement initiatives by the state government and other development partners.
“We are here with my Board members that consist of men of calibre, highly devoted and determined to carry on with the mandate in which the commission was established in 2018.
“We have gone round some local government areas in the six northeastern states including Bama and Konduga in Borno where we inspected the newly constructed Police Barracks and other facilities that were hitherto destroyed by insurgents.
“We want to appreciate the good works your administration is doing in the state in terms of RRR, and on behalf of the commission, I assure you that NEDC will key into your noble policies and programmes”. General Tarfa stated.
On his part, the Managing Director, Alhaji Alkali who announced the donation of the N2 billion cheque, said, “The reopening of the Monday Market last week after it was reconstructed by the state government and other assistance from individuals and organizations, is a welcome development, hence, the NEDC’s gesture to help the traders restart businesses.”
Responding, Governor Zulum congratulated the new Board members and prayed God Almighty to guide and protect them in the course of their primary assignment.
He said, the over-decade crisis perpetrated by insurgents has led to the destruction of 5,000 classrooms, 800 municipal houses, 1 million homes, and the displacement of about 50,000 widows and orphans across the state.
He added that ” based on the European Union Report, about 6.7 billion US Dollars worth of property were destroyed in the whole of the northeast, with Borno as the worse hit state.
“In 2012, about 3.5 million people were displaced in Borno, but with security improvement, we only close one million displaced persons living in camps in some of our Local government areas, and we are doing everything possible to close them entirely.
“In this our trying moment, we want NEDC to key into our Borno Model in renewable energy, education, RRR and to also provide building materials for us.
” I promised to judiciously distribute the N2 billion and not a single kobo would be diverted or remitted into the Borno State Government Account”. Zulum stated.
Meanwhile, the team also visited the Maiduguri Hajj Camp where about 10,000 repentant Boko Haram members and their families were undergoing deradicalization and rehabilitation.
The NEDC Board assured that it would soon assist the repentant insurgents and their families to acquire Western and skills education, food and clothing so that they would be reintegrated back to society.
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