The Speaker Borno House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Abdulkarim Lawan, has called for the establishment of military super camp in deserted Guzamala Local Government Area to facilitate the return of displaced residents now taking refuge in Maiduguri.
Lawal is the member representing Guzamala Constituency in the Borno House of Assembly.
Lawan made the plea on Thursday in Maiduguri while receiving members of Guzamala Youth Forum who called on him to press home their demands.
The forum told him that the displaced members of the constituency were homesick and ready to go back home if provided with adequate security.
Lawan said the call for the military camp became necessary as Guzamala remained the only local government in Borno without any security presence for the past two years.
“We have two district heads and 16 other village heads in Guzamala but all of them are taking refuge in Maiduguri right now.
“We have 10 wards, 72 units and over 185 settlements in Guzamala but as I speak now there is no single person living in the entire territory of Guzamala.
“So, I am appealing to the Chief of Army Staff and Theatre Commander Operation Lafiya Dole to redeploy personnel to Guzamala to restore normalcy so that our people can go back and resume their normal life because our people are tired of staying in IDPs camp,” Lawan said.
The speaker lauded the state governor on the ongoing resettlement of displaced persons in liberated communities, and urged the Federal Government to assist the state in the onerous task.
“FG should also assist Borno state government for it cannot alone shoulder the resettlement programme with its meager resources.
“Borno deserves special consideration from Federal Government,” the speaker said.
Earlier, Chairman of the forum, Malam Babagana Alkali, said they were in the house to commend the speaker for his quality representation and to seek his intervention to facilitate their return to their homes.
Alkali said people of Guzamala who conducted the last general election in Maiduguri IDP camps were now eager to go home and resume their normal lives if government would provide the needed security presence.
“We want you to use your office in communicating to the relevant authorities to look into our plight,” Alkali said.