The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) says it has removed 607 beggars and mentally challenged individuals from the streets of Abuja since July 2025, in a bid to improve security and public order.
Mrs Ukachi Adebayo, Head of Enforcement at the FCT Social Development Secretariat, told the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday that 583 of those evacuated were beggars, while 23 were identified as mentally challenged.
The operation, conducted by the Operation Sweep Abuja Clean team, involved counselling, profiling, and returning individuals to their states of origin through liaison offices in collaboration with state governments.
Adebayo noted that many of those removed often return to the streets, saying: “The more you take them out, the more they resurface. Some of them were driven by insecurity in their states and ran to Abuja to take refuge, but we will continue to apprehend them and take them back.”
The Acting Director of Social Welfare at the Secretariat, Mrs Gloria Onwuka, added that some children begging in Abuja were brought in from other states by unidentified individuals, with some women posing as mothers of the children.
She described begging as “now run like a business,” noting that authorities have intercepted many such cases.
Dr Peter Olumuji, Secretary of the FCTA Command and Control Centre, explained that the operation, instituted by FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, is a joint effort of security agencies and FCT departments.
He said the exercise targets beggars, miscreants, and criminal elements, some of whom serve as informants to criminals.
Minister Wike, speaking in October 2024, had warned that the city was at risk of becoming a “beggars’ city” and emphasised that the crackdown was necessary to ensure safety and restore order.
(NAN)
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