Beggars in Abuja have expressed outrage against the ongoing clamp down on them by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, had directed officials of the administration to carry out what he called a total sanitation of the nation’s capital.
He had earlier given beggars in particular up to last Sunday to vacate Abuja streets or risk arrest.
Daily Trust reports that the clamp down on the beggars, scavengers and others started on Monday in the operation that the officials said would last for two weeks.
But reacting to the exercise yesterday, some beggars, particularly those with disabilities, protested the clampdown, voicing their concerns during a visit to the head office of Media Trust Group, publishers of the Trust Newspaper titles, Trust TV, and Trust Radio.
They came under the umbrella of Arewa Freedom of the Blind Multipurpose Cooperative Society, Abuja chapter.
Auwal I. Alhassan, who spoke on their behalf, criticised the FCTA for not engaging with them or addressing their grievances prior to the eviction order.
He stated, “If you want to remove someone from the street, you should communicate your intentions clearly, especially to those of us with disabilities. Some of us had jobs before, but it was the same government that laid us off. Now, they are flushing us out without providing proper shelter. Are we not Nigerians? We have equal rights to life.”
He further noted that aside from the SERAP, no NGOs, civil society organisations, or religious groups had come to their aid.
Alhassan claimed that those arrested were living in deplorable conditions at the FCT Rehabilitation Centre in Bwari, lacking food, water, and medical care.
“They chased us as if we were chickens. Over 200 of our members have been arrested and locked up at the rehabilitation centre. We have a constitutional right to live freely anywhere we choose.
“Many of us are graduates and NCE holders, yet the government fails to provide us with jobs, treating us as if we are expendable. Meanwhile, bandits, terrorists, and kidnappers operate with impunity. It’s alarming that the enforcement team included military personnel who should be combating the real insecurity plaguing our country,” he said. (Daily Trust)
