Abubakar who gave the warning yesterday when he received a 12-member Assessment Team of the European Union (EU), United Nations (UN) and World Bank (WB) on insurgency devastated areas in the North-East to Bauchi, warned that efforts to rebuild the areas devastated by activities of insurgents in the North-East will fail unless poverty and ignorance are adequately addressed.
The governor stated that the mission of the team was a timely one in view of the devastation Boko Haram has unleashed on Nigerians particularly those residing in the North- East.
He said, “Rebuilding infrastructure is important in rebuilding the areas but addressing the underlying factor of the insurgency is much more important because the North-East is seriously affected by poverty and ignorance.
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“If poverty and ignorance are not properly addressed, they could provide grounds for the rise of another crazy group if Boko Haram is taken care of. We are running a risk if poverty is not addressed.”
According to him, Bauchi State has played host to an influx of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) since 2004 following ethno-religious crises in Kaduna, Plateau and some parts of Bauchi long before the Boko Haram crisis broke in1999.
The governor explained that he has been hospitable to millions of displaced persons who escaped crisis in other parts of the region, saying several communities have sprang up as a result.