By Diana Rose Wairumbi
A top official with the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) has expressed discontent about the unfortunate conditions under which Cameroonians fleeing the Anglophone crisis are living in Nigeria.
The Programme Operation Manager and UNHCR representative Antonio Canhandula shade his opinions via his twitter handle after visiting some of the refugees in Benue States and Nigeria’s Cross River earlier this week. Other refugees are living in Taraba States and Akwa Ibom.
One of Canhandula’s tweets revealed how some women said they had so little food to feed their families that they had to carry bricks to earn money to supplement what relief agencies provided.
Accompanying a photo of children who are lined up in a classroom outside he wrote: “Beautiful Cameroon refugee students. Children do not deserve the unfortunate situation of a refugee. This is freedom and human growth arrested. Robbing children of a future. An urgent solution is called for. Ikom.”
“Children need to continue with their learning. I teach them outside here to make sure they can learn something” Odi Geraldine, trained teacher #Cameroonian #refugees in Ikom, #CrossRiver state. #CameroonRefugees pic.twitter.com/83ouKfPvM5
— UNHCR Nigeria (@unhcrnigeria) March 27, 2018
The UNHCR’s records show that 20,000 plus Cameroonians have fled the country’s North West and South West regions due to the Anglophone crisis.
Canhandula’s reservations also represent those of the UNHCR agency. The UNHCR is pushing for a political solution to the crisis, lamenting that it does not have enough funds to cater for the growing number of refugees.
Secessionist elements pushing for independence under the Ambazonia Republic often clash with state security agencies. They had earlier used guerrilla style attacks to kill over twenty security forces.
