By Daniel Tyokua
The Social Development Secretariat of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) said it has evacuated no fewer than one hundred and fifty beggars on the major streets of the city for allegedly constituting nuisances.
The beggars mostly women and children including old men were evacuated in collaboration with the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB), Directorate of Road Traffic Services, FCT Security Department and office of the Senior Special Assistant to the FCT Minister on Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement.
Hadiza Mohammed, secretary for the Social Development Secretariat revealed that the FCTA is targeting to evacuate between 400 to 1,000 beggars from the city.
She said the exercise will be done camping them in some of FCTA centres for proper documentation as the Minister will liaise with all the governors of their states of origin, which they will be returned to their respective states.
This, according to her was on the heels of FCTA’s renewed clampdown on street begging in the nation’s capital, following receipt of complaints about the menace.
It was observed that the team picked up the beggars from streets having shopping malls, supermarkets , Mosques and other notorious spots for alms begging within Maitama , Wuse II and Garki and other areas within the city.
“The Minister has just sent a strong and sound warning through me as the leader of this team, that they should go off the streets, because we are coming out massively for them.
“The minister has already sent them food and drinks to eat and break fast in the evening, but we are coming for them if they don’t leave the streets, as they stop begging on the streets of Abuja”said Hadiza.
The secretary also announced a ministerial pardon by the Minister of State for those evacuated during the weekend with a strong warning that they should not return to the street.
Similarly, the Senior Special Assistant to FCT Minister, on Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement, Ikharo Attah, noted that what the FCTA did was to evacuate the beggars from the streets and take them to a safe place, profile and ensure that they are that most of them are well catered for and subsequently repatriated.
