Wau state mayor directs aid agencies to halt food supply to IDPs

April 1, April 2017 (WAU) – The mayor of Wau municipal council, Mel Aleu has directed all humanitarian agencies operating in Wau town to suspend the distribution of food except water and medical facilities to displaced persons at the Episcopal Church compound.

Aleu was speaking at a meeting of representatives of all aid agencies said food distribution be temporarily halted until the repatriation of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) to the new proposed site is accomplished.

During the meeting, the mayor also formed a repatriation committee comprising of security, state head of U.N agencies as well as the South Sudanese Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (SSRRC).

“Yes I said they will be no longer distribution in that placed starting from today. Anybody or any organization who wants to give assistance should wait for three days or later,” said Aleu.

“From Monday, the police, the security organs will be there in that proposed area to protect those who are going to implement their projects in the area,” he added.

Mel said the relocation of the IDPs to the new area from Episcopal Church compound was a decision taken by the state government to allow the several displaced persons to have space for cultivation.

The mayor requested aid agencies to present their nominees to the repatriation committee, but many asked to make prior consultations.

Currently, the Episcopal Church compound is accommodating more than 4, 000 displaced persons who fled their homes last month after clashes between the cattle keepers and farmers in Jur River county.

(ST)