Taraba Govt Rejects Almajirai From Nasarawa State
BY AMEH IDUJAGI, JALINGO – The Taraba state government state has rejected Almajirai pupils evacuated from Nasarawa state that arrived Jalingo, the state capital at about 3:00am on Monday in four buses.
The Almajiris, along with officials of Nasarawa State Ministry of Women Affairs, slept outside the office of Secretary to the Taraba State Government in Jalingo and were only received by some officials in the office at 10am
It was further gathered that the Almajiris were later chased away from the gate of the office of the Secretary to the Taraba State Government on the order of a senior security officer attached to the Governor, who had initially accompanied other officials to welcome the Almajiris to Jalingo township gate along Jalingo-Wukari road .
The Almajiris, tagged as possible dangerous species, were kept in the sun at township gate along with the officials of the Nassarawa State Government for over three hours awaiting their letter of rejection.
Our correspondent gathered that officials from the office of the Secretary to the Taraba State Government came to where the Almajiris were kept at about 12.45pm and handed over the rejection letter to the officers from Nasarawa state.
Checks indicate that the rejection letter was addressed to the Secretary to Government of Nasarawa State with instructions to take back the Almajiris to Nasarawa state.
The letter from the office of the Secretary to Taraba State Government dated May 4, 2020 with reference number SGS/ADM/S/167/11/125 and signed by Sunday Tanko Maiyaki, Permanent Secretary, Political Cabinet Affairs and General Services, read in part; “On physical verification, the number of pupils brought to Taraba State are 79 not 102 as stated in the letter from Nasarawa state.
“The government of Taraba state wish to return the pupils to you and requests that the pupils should be properly profiled indicating their Local Government of origin in Taraba State and individual status in respect of the pandemic.”
The letter further said that that “on subsequent return, the pupils should be accompanied with their respective teachers who will identify their parents at their respective Local Government Areas to properly hand them over to their parents.
The State commissioner for Health, Dr. Innocent Vakkai announced at a press briefing in Jalingo on Monday that the Nassarawa officials did not follow the due process agreed by the Northern Governors on the evacuation of Almajiris to their respective state of origins.
