Internally displaced persons in Benue State have lamented over the poor living conditions they face at their internally displaced persons (IDP) camps as a result of the insecurity that has ravaged their locality.
According to the IDPs, two women at Agagbe Internally Displaced Persons Camp in Gwer West Local Government Area of Benue State reportedly lost their children after childbirth.
Furthermore, six children in the same camp have measles as a result of the camp’s deplorable conditions.
Terna Jacob, the camp manager who described the predicament of detainees at the IDP camp to journalists on Monday, said hunger and infections have spread throughout the camp.
Pregnant women in the camp, according to Jacob, have converted bathrooms into delivery rooms.
He said, “Just a few days ago, two people lost their babies. One died prematurely, and the other lost the baby while giving birth. Both incidents happened on Sunday and Monday last week.
“There is hunger in the camp. Also, they (pregnant women) could not get money to go to the hospital, so they were delivered in the camp. Even finding a place to give birth is a problem here. There is a space here; a toilet built by Medecins Sans Frontieres is the one most women here use to give birth.
“If they don’t have money to go to the hospital, they use the toilet to give birth since we are currently congested in the rooms. It’s really tough.
“There is even an issue of measles that is rampant here in camp. Altogether, six children are infected with measles and have no medical attention, so they are taking native herbs”.
The camp manager, who stated that the State Emergency and Management Agency was aware of the condition of the IDPs, stated that little had been done to ameliorate their issues.
When contacted, James Iorpuu, acting Executive Secretary of SEMA, stated that 200 bags of rice were delivered to the camp during the latest delivery of relief materials to IDP camps across the state around three weeks ago.
