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Borno state governor, Hon. Kashim Shettima on Thursday hosted the UNHCR Representative to Nigeria and Ecowas Angèle Dikongué-Atangana and her team who were in the state for an official engagement.
The governor intimated them on state government"s efforts on reconstruction of towns and communities, and further thanked the UNHCR on its intervention in the state and further solicited their support in the areas reconstruction of Chibok.
"We have resolved to take our destiny in our own hands. We have started rebuilding Bama, Gwoza and we will soon move to Damasak because if there is a will, there is always a way.
"The sooner we reconstruct homes and villages for our people to go back and restore their dignity, the better for all of us. As I am talking to you now, destructions worth $5.9B were detected in Borno alone and Borno state accounts for 90% of refugees or IDPs in this country.
"Honestly, it is not that we have enough resources but with the little we have, we will make sure that it is judiciously utilized and believe me, as long as Muhammadu Buhari is the President of this country, no Jupiter on this earth can stop us from getting access to federal resources to redevelop our communities.
"There are some mischief mongers in Borno and other parts of the country who do not want Borno to get back on its fit. They were given retention that Maiduguri will be over ruined by the Boko Haram and we are going to be ruined out in Maiduguri but Maiduguri is here and Maiduguri will stand.
"We want to solicit for your support on the permanent structure you have started, to come to Chibok because it is the whole symbol of the tragedy that befallen the Northeast even if the UNHCR is interested in visibility Gatamarwa, Kautikare, Kuburngla, Koria and so many communities in Chibok were destroyed. So I urge you to intervene in Chibok, Kawuri, Malari and so many communities which require much more help.
"I wish to congratulate you for the emergence of Antonio Gutterres as UN Secretary General who has also worked with the UNHCR for years and we are wishing him all the best. We hope in his high pedestal he will remember us," Shettima said.
The UNHRC Representative for ECOWAS and Nigeria earlier on her address spoke on their interventions in Borno and role of Nigeria in Africa.
She said: "When I came here in February last year I have a team of four staff members in the whole of the state but having seen situation of the state and having heard from you on the need to step up our interventions in the state, we now have 32 staff members working in the state who are mostly Nigerians and few International staff.
"The interventions we render include non-food items and we are a protection agency, therefore we do a lot of training in terms of protection, emphasizing on sexual violence and abuses.
"We are driven by our humanitarian mandate that for some of us as African or even members of this country, we believed that there might be no working Africa or standing Africa if Nigeria is not on the right track and therefore, we believed that it is a must that in as much as all Africans are aware that Nigeria is facing some challenges, it is important that we synergize and come together to help Nigeria back on the right track less there will be no meaningful future for Africa or even the world," said Atangana.
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