- Zulum tells doctors Borno will match NGO pay
Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum, alongside Senator Kashim Shettima were in the border town of Gamboru in Ngala Local Government Area, undertaking humanitarian responses, from Sunday to Tuesday.
The leaders supervised and also got directly involved in the distribution of food and non-food items to a combined number of 60,813 internally displaced persons in camps and those resettled in communities.
Zulum and Shettima (who represents Borno Central where Ngala is located) traveled by road from Maiduguri on Sunday and on their first day in Gamboru, a total of 55,253 persons from Gamboru and Ngala towns received food and non-food items.
The beneficiaries comprised 39,903 women who each got 5,000 naira cash and a wrapper each, and 15,350 men, some of them married to the women, who also received 25kg of rice and 25kg of maize each.
On the second day, another 5,560 IDPs recently resettled in Wulgo town also in Ngala LGA were supported.
Amongst them, 3,360 females received 5,000 Naira cash and a wrapper while 2,200 men got 25kg of rice and 25kg of maize each, all in Wulgo.
Zulum and Shettima traveled with the Member of House of Representatives representing Ngala, Bama, Kala-Balge Federal Constituency, Dr. Zainab Gimba, Commissioners for Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (RRR), Engr. Mustapha Gubio, Agriculture, Engr. Bukar Talba, and Poverty Alleviation, Nuhu Clark, a number of humanitarian workers, officials and some APC chieftains.
Zulum and Shettima were received on arrival by some key stakeholders of Ngala LGA comprising the member of the State Assembly representing Ngala, Bukar Mustapha Dalhatu, Commissioner of Religious Affairs, Abacha Umar Ngala, Special Adviser on RRR, AbdulRahman AbdulKarim, and Special Adviser on Events and Hospitality, Bintu Sheriff. All the stakeholders contributed in hosting the Governor’s delegation, and in the mobilization, coordination and distribution of humanitarian responses.
Aside coordinating humanitarian responses, Governor Zulum visited the General Hospital in Ngala town, and a primary healthcare centre in Gamboru town.
During the visit, the Governor interacted with medical doctors and even announced that he will approve salaries that will match whatever International NGOs are using to attract doctors to operate in Ngala.
Zulum’s promise based on an instance in 2021 in which he had to suspend Government employed doctors for being absent at the general hospital, leaving services to only doctors working for International NGOs involved with humanitarian activities. Zulum had fumed that while NGO doctors from other countries were there to serve, those being paid by the State Government abandoned their duties.
The Governor, in his yesterday’s visit, interacted with doctors, nurses and other health workers, and listened to issues they raised with a promise to addressing them head on.
