Jutha Gupah, Maiduguri
November 28, 2017.
The Victims Support Fund (VSF) has launched a peace building project
with commencement of reconciliations campaigns to promote peace,
security and social cohesion among communities affected by Boko Haram
insurgency in Northeast.
Launching the project on Wednesday in Maiduguri at the Musa Usman
Secretariat complex, the Executive Director of VSF, Prof. Sunday
Ochoche said that the implementation of the project by traditional,
religious and community leaders was to promote reconciliations and
forgiveness among 1.8 million victims of insurgency.
His words: “Today’s peace building project; was designed to enhance
peace, reconciliation and social cohesion in the society, particularly
the ones affected by the eight-year Boko Haram insurgency that claimed
many lives and property in Borno state.
“While the campaigns of traditional and religious leaders; also sought
to streamline the full implementation of various humanitarian
interventions for rapid resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons
(IDPs) in affected communities in the war ravaged region of northeast.
“This project was to reconcile and forgive among members of the
communities that were seriously hurt, destroyed and traumatized during
eight-year insurgency period.”
He said even though the implementation of the project; has already
commenced in Maiduguri Metropolitan Council (MMC) and Askira/Uba Local
Government Area of Borno state, as a pilot peace building project, it
is to be extended to insurgency affected states of Adamawa, Yobe,
Gombe, Bauchi and Taraba.
He said that everything the fund is doing is geared towards restoring
an enduring peace in Borno and other states in northeast.
He said the peace building project, was to make people return to their
liberated communities and live in peace and harmony.
“We want to ensure reconciliation between different entities that have
been hurt, destroyed and affected by the Boko Haram insurgency,” said
Prof. Ochoche.
He said the peace building process, is a strategic means of putting
together the different interventions to fast track reconciliation,
rehabilitation and cohesion among the various communities affected by
insurgency.
“We want people to return to their normal ways of living and smile
again, live in confidence and sleep with their two eyes closed,” he
declared.
The strategies of implementation, according to him, include to pull
and tap from available local and international resources in the state
that could mitigate conflicts and peace through; “Construction of
networks of peace and conflict resolutions to achieve sustainable
peace and development of communities affected by insurgency.”
He said the project will facilitate and sustain a strong multi-levels
forum for inter and intra religious and cultural dialogue and
reconciliation. He explained that this could enhance sustainable
research and documentation on trends and dynamics of conflicts in the
northeast.
He said after implementing the peace building project, it could also
mitigate conflicts to enhance peace not only in the region, but the
entire country.
The fund was established early 2014 by the Federal Government under
its Presidential Initiative for the North-East (PINE) to assist and
treat Boko Haram victims injured in the eight year insurgency. Since
the takeoff of VSF, it assisted six hospitals, including University of
Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH), Maiduguri with N60 million to
treat injured victims of insurgency.
VSF, like other local and international humanitarian agencies;
provided education support to 80,000 primary schools pupils displaced
by Boko Haram insurgency and rebuild destroyed schools, health centres
and public structures at in Bama and Dikwa.
“We engaged 8, 000 vulnerable women in the economic support and
empowerment project, along with 500 farmers in dry season framing from
Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno state,” said Prof. Ochoche.
