VP visiting Boko Haram liberated communities but residents still out of homes

The women distributed relief materials while the interior minister is to determine whether government should reintroduce civil authorities in the captured areas.

But Abba Musa is still not satisfied with his inability to get back to his community in Monguno despite the liberation of his community by the Nigerian Military.

Monguno is among the over 20 Local Government Areas liberated from Boko Haram insurgents fighting a seven year war to carve out an Islamic state in North Eastern Nigeria.

"I regret not owning properties in Maiduguri town before this crisis," Abba said referring to his properties that were destroyed in Monguno making him an IDP in Borno state capital.

Maiduguri and Jere have been overstretched following the influx of people from other local government areas. Thousands who flew to neighboring countries of Cameroon, Chad and Niger have been returned but are still living at Internally Displaced People's (IDP) camps in Maiduguri, which is also the Borno State capital, raising the population of the area from 1.2 million to over 3 million, a local resident Ibrahim Mustapha told Pulse.

The war has seen almost all the Local Governments Areas in Borno State moving to Maiduguri and Jere, except people living in Biu, Ngazai- Shani, Kwaya -Kusar, Bayo, Askira-Uba Local Government Areas.

Locals said Abadam, Bama, Chibok, Damboa, Dikwa, Gubio, Guzamala, Gwoza, Hawul, Kal/Balge, Konduga, Kukawa, Mafa, Magumeri, Maiduguri, Marte-Borno, Mobbar, Monguno and Ngala local governments are yet to be occupied by returnees.

"But there are camps mostly in local government secretariats," a vigilante youth Shehu Dogo said.

Another resident Musa Ngala said the only people he see during a visit to these local governments are uniform men who have pushed the insurgents out of the community after years of occupation.

"We are not happy collecting relief materials and seeing VIPs coming from Abuja and other places. All we need now is for us to be returned to our various villages," Ngala added.

The Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government has said that the war against insurgency has been technically won, but residents still fear attacks from insurgents in liberated communities judging from the massive coordinated suicide bombings in the troubled North East in recent days.

Relocating displaced persons to communities is a challenge to an administration whose budget has been affected by fall in oil revenue.

The Shehu of Borno Alhaji Abubakar Ibn Umar Garbai El-Amin El Kanemi said about 2 million people from other local government areas are currently living in his domain.

"Maiduguri is congested. The former outskirts is now the town," said Abba Maman an entrepreneur who left his local government to build and settle in Maiduguri.

"I had properties in Mungono but all are gone now," Abba said. "My friends in Maiduguri and other states helped me to build this house in Maiduguri town."

Days back, 1,350 displaced pregnant women and nursing mothers in Dalori IDP camp in Maiduguri metropolis, received relief materials from the Wife of Nigeria's President, Hajiya Aisha Buhari.

Dalori camp still has about 20,000 IDPs. In Dikwa town the displaced are put at 55,000. Bama, which has an area of 4,997 kilometers with a population of 269,986, according to the 2006 census, has approximately 50,000 IDPs.

Many of the residents are afraid to return to their villages following revelation by the Chairman of Bama Local Government Area in Borno state, Alhaji Modu Alhaji Gujja, that hundreds of corpses dumped under a bridge by Boko Haram militants were buried upon return, a story corroborated by a local, Mustapha Sani.Nigeria's Vice President's Wife, Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo, has flagged off distribution of relief items in Maiduguri. The gesture was an initiative of wives of the security chiefs.

Mrs. Osinbajo, saw fear, tears, and trauma from the locals. "We see trauma but we see hope and courage in the faces of the women and children."

"As wives of Nigeria's service chiefs, we don't sleep at night just as our husbands don't also sleep at night," Mrs. Omobolanle Olonisakin, Wive of the Chief of Defence Staff said.

Members of the Defence and Police Officers Wives Association, DEPOWA, are: Mrs Omobolanle Olanisakin, DEPOWA President; Hajiya Ummu-Kalthum Tukur Buratai, President NAOWA; Hajiya Hafsat Sadiq Abubakar, President NAFOWA; Mrs. Therisa Ebas President NNOWA and Mrs. Agarase Solomon Arase, President POWA.

Wife of Borno State governor, Hajiya Nana Shettima believes the long years of insurgency has caused physical harm and psychological trauma to thousands of innocent citizens in the state mostly women and children.

A humanitarian, Mohammed Jidda said returning civil authorities in liberated areas in Borno State will give confidence to the displaced willing to return to their communities.

"But for now, government will continue to spend billions of Naira in feeding millions of people."

Ibrahim Yerwabe contributed reporting from Maiduguri, Borno state.