Jutha Gupah, Maiduguri July 8, 2018. The Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai has said that 38,609 internally displaced persons (IDPs) have returned to three liberated communities in Borno state. The communities were rid of Improvised Explosives Devices on farmlands and roads, before returning the people under Operation Last Hold (OLH) of the Army. Buratai disclosed this at the weekend at this year’s grand finale of Nigerian Army Day Celebration (NADCEL) in Monguno, Borno state. According to him, the explosives ridden farmlands are located in eight councils of Guzamala, Marte, Mobbar, Abadam, Kala/Balge, Ngala, Gubio and Magumeri. In a breakdown of returnees, he said: “The Army has successfully returned 22,500 displaced persons to Guzamala. In Bama a total of about 6,000 people have also been relocated from Maiduguri camps to their ancestral homes. “Kukawa council area also recorded 10,109 returnees to liberated communities of the Lake Chad Basin.” The returnees, after being displaced by Boko Haram from their communities, however lived in resettlement camps of Maiduguri for over three years. OLH, which has the theme: “Rebuilding Our Livelihoods for a Prosperous Tomorrow,” was to operate for four months in farmlands clearances of explosives, bushes and shrubs. “This operation is to move IDPs from camps to liberated communities resume their farming and other economic activities in eight councils and Lake Chad Islands,” he said. According to him, the operation was to further decimate remnants of the Boko Haram terrorists, and return IDPs to their communities. He said this will provide safe and secured environment for the resumption of farming, fishing and other economic activities. On gunboats and platforms at Baga, he said: “They are being delivered to the amphibious task force to enable the unit to immediately commence clearance of the Lake Chad waterways. “The amphibious task force detachment is expected to work in conjunction with the ongoing naval operations to have a collective increased number of gunboats and capabilities.
