FROM PAUL ORUDE, BAUCHI
Speaker, Bauchi State House of Assembly, Honourable Kawuwa Shehu
Damina, has commended artistes and singers in the state for launching
a concert and an album to raise funds to ameliorate the plight of
Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).
Damina made the remark yesterday in his office when the artistes and
singers under the umbrella of Tamburan Fasaha Bauchi, an Independent
Multimedia Association, led by the Chairman and Vice Chairman, Mallam
Suleiman SK and Andy Bature respectively, paid him a courtesy call in
his office.
Receiving the group in company with Hon. Mohammed Aminu Tukur, the
member representing Lere/Bula constituency in the Bauchi and some
lawmakers, Damina urged them to organise a full fledge launching of
the album to raise more funds for the IDPs.
The Bauchi Speaker said their initiative was worth emulating but
advised them to give adequate publicity to the project to enable
more well meaning Nigerians and corporate organisations to come in in
and contribute to assist the IDPs.
He was optimistic that the efforts by the administration of President
Muhammadu Buhari and other stakeholders to address the plight of the
IDPs affected by Boko Haram insurgency will soon yield positive
results.
Damina said that the idea of the album launch and peace concert
organised by Tamburan Fasaha was a right step in the right direction
and urged all citizens to rally round to ensure that the IDPs are
reintegrated back into the society as soon as possible because of the
trauma they have been through.
He then advised the group to liaise with and involved organisations
such as the Bauchi State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) which is
handing the issues of IDPs, as well as the T.Y Foundation so that
their gesture can cut across the states, sub region and region
He assured that the House will support the group and other
associations with ideas that will improve humanity by making relevant
bills and resolutions to improve te welfare and well being of the
citizens.
Tukur then handed two cheques- N1 million from the Speaker of the
House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara for 10 copies of the
album to support the IDPs and another cheque of N100, 000 as his
personal donation to support the IDPs.
Earlier in his remark, Mallam Suleiman SK, said they moved by the
plights of the IDPs who were displaced from their villages and towns
by insurgents while some members of their families were killed saying
they have so far documented a total of 2, 311 IDPs in Bauchi State.
He said that their association was also approached by some of the IDPs
for help which prompted them to conduct the concert and use it as a
fundraiser to help the IDPs in collaboration with the state government
to raise funds to help the IDPs.
Suleiman urged the state executive arm of government in the state to
show more commitment to the project as many of the IDPs were
disappointed that no single official came from the executive on the
day of the peace concert.
He called on wealthy individuals to help the IDPs residing not only in
Bauchi State but other parts of the North and elsewhere.
He also urged government to establish more vocational training centres
and upgrade the existing ones so that the IDPs as well as other
unemployed young people can be trained on skills which will make them
productive and self-reliant.
