by Yemi Itodo,
No fewer than five Agatu indegens, taking refuge at Ugbokpo, Apa LGA of Benue State have been confirmed dead.
Scores of other indigenes in the camp, ranging from children, women and elders are also said to be suffering from one ailment or another.
Addressing Journalists at the IDPs camp, Ugbokpo on Wednesday, the Chairman of the camp committee, Rev. Fr. John Attah said the dead, mostly adults died from various ailments which could be as a result of fatigue or emotional instability while others complained of malaria fever.
“Some of them spent over a week inside the forest before they could trace their way into this place. So, many of them died of fatigue and the children died of malnutrition”, Fr. Attah added.
Moved by the rate of death and the continuous plights of the Internally Displaced Persons, wife of former President of the Senate, Barr. Mrs. Kate Mark has deployed a team of professional medical practitioners to the camp to offer free medical services to children, nursing mothers and pregnant women.
The team which arrived the Ugbokpo IDPs camp on Wednesday has treated over 400 cases of malaria, cholera, jaundice, malnutrition, typhoid and other ailments related to pregnancy.
The medical practitioners also went to the camp with fully automated laboratory equipments for on the spot diagnosis of ailments at window stage as well as offering drugs and precautionary kits to the camp officials against further outbreak of common sicknesses.
Barr. Mrs. Kate Mark also used the forum to call on the state and federal governments to as a matter of urgency put the insurgencies to permanent rest, to enable the victims return home for the new farming season which had already begun.
Represented by Hon. Mrs. Ada Mark Ogbole and Chief Adakole Elijah, Mrs. Mark bemoaned the sharp practices of some individuals and government officials in diverting some relief materials meant for the Agatu IDPs for any other purpose.
While charging the camp officials to be more concerned about the health and welfare of the IDPs, Mrs. Mark also called on the government and kind hearted individuals to come to the aide of the victims to forestall further outbreak of ailments and its attendant death.
Senator Mark’s wife also advised the medical sub committee at the camp to always refer complicated medical issues to appropriate specialist hospitals to avoid what had happened in the past.
