Human rights activist, and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mike Ozekhome has urged the federal government to create a separate budget for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in the country.
He made the call on Tuesday during his visit to the Durumi IDP camp in Area I, Abuja to commemorate his 67th birthday.
Ozekhome called on the government to create a yearly budget for the vulnerable members of the society, saying without that, the country will continue to incubate a dangerous segment of the society.
He argued that the children among these people might grow up and take up arms against the government.
The senior advocated maintained that a gainfully employed person would not carry guns in the forest and waylay people.
He said, “When the children among these people grow up and discover that society denied them of many privileges, they may take up arms.
“No one who is gainfully employed will begin carrying guns in the forest and waylaying people. Some of these bandits are engaged in these acts as payback to an unaccommodating and unkind society.
“It is payback time. That is the way some of them see it when you talk to them. In order to build a just, egalitarian, equitable and fair society, the government must come to the aid of these deprived people.
“My message to the government is for these people to know that a government exists through welfare initiatives. It is enshrined in Section 14 of the Constitution for welfare and security of the citizens.”