Worried over the danger posed over street begging, the Kwara State Government on Thursday evacuated beggars in selected areas of Ilorin, the state capital.
The evacuation, News Hub Mag! gathered, was to rid the streets of Ilorin metropolis of alms begging.
The state Commissioner for Social Development, Afolashade Kemi, who led the government team to carry out the exercise, said the state government frowns at such unwholesome practice.
In a statement issued in Ilorin, the Press Secretary of the state Ministry of Social Development, Adesikela Ajiboye, listed the areas where the beggars were evacuated as Tipper Garage, Tanke; Offa Garage, Geri-Alimi and Challenge, all in Ilorin.
Prior to the evacuation, it was observed that the affected areas played host beggars, who converted road medians to spots where they beg for alms.
The statement said the exercise is one of the core mandate of the ministry of social development.
“North doesn’t need almajiri Commission but a ban on practice”
It quoted the commissioner as saying that the administration of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq prohibits street begging.
The statement said the areas where the beggars were evacuated are prohibited for such purpose.
It added that the commissioner rescued and fed a mentally derailed woman found lying helplessly under the bridge during the exercise.
The statement also noted that the commissioner interacted with the woman on a vocation of her choice, saying that the ministry has also shouldered the responsibility of her treatment.
