Unbelievable:Graduate Beggars , Corporate Beggars And Children Beggars In Anambra State

Beggars have flooded Anambra state. It is no longer hidden as they deploy all kinds of means to attract their patronizers to part with their money and other valuables. 

There are all kinds of beggars—corporate beggars, children beggars, destitute beggars, graduate beggars, civil servant beggars then the real beggars to mention but a few.

                 

  There are over 10,000 beggars in all the streets of Anambra state especially Onitsha, Nnewi, Ekwulobia, Awka , Umunze, Nkpor and Ihiala and despite the efforts of the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development in taking them off the streets to the rehabilitation camps, they  still flood the streets. 

Often those who are health wise sound and with their senses escape arrests during raids while those who could be termed corporate beggars camouflage once encountered by officials of the ministry. The other type of beggars is those using the names of motherless babies homes and health challenged patient they may know nothing about to gather money.

 

Penultimate week , a graduate of Linguistic University of Jos , Rose Ali and a Civil Servant with Ministry of Environment Anambra state were among the 180 beggars taken off the major streets of Anambra state by the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development.

Rose from Nimo, Njikoka local government area was dramatic while she was arrested. She has partial blindness but insisted on seeing Gov. Obi before she could be taken away from begging.

 Her words: “I will not go anywhere. You arrested me last year and dumped me at Nteje without giving me anything. Let Governor Peter Obi come himself so that we can talk.  I am not a regular beggar but I beg when I run short of money. My sister died and I am begging to raise money for her burial.”

 Her coherence was sound and her agony unmistakable but the truth lies that her approach was not going to yield the result as the Governor does not even know the ministry was carrying out the raid that particular day, but the liabilities or successes of the trip lies on his table.

Nimo is blessed with prominent citizens who could be of help to the girl having gone to school and graduated but what are they waiting for , to either bring her case to the Governor or facilitate employment for him even when Nimo citizens are serving in the Obi’s government and Presidency.

Another beggar, Loveday Okonkwo from Imo state said he is begging to raise N50,000, he will use to register at Disabled Craft Centre, Ikeja Lagos admitting that begging is illegal . He is calling on Imo state Governor Rochas Okorocha to come to his aid as he has no person to run to hence he sneaked out from Imo to beg in Anambra where he is not known.

But other beggars including Habiba Adamu from Kaduna state begged for forgiveness and indicated interested to go back to their home if spared of being taken to the Nteje rehabilitation camp .

On her part, Mrs Nkechinyere Okeke working in the Anambra State Waste Management Agency (ASWAMA) of Anambra state Ministry of Environment using her daughter Ginika Okeke for begging claimed she is begging to raise N80,000 for treatment of her child.

Over 150 parents caught using their children for begging in major cities in the state would be prosecuted by the Anambra state government in the family court.  Over 50 children used by their parents for begging were arrested, others ran away.  

And over 185 beggars and destitute taken off the major cities of the state will undergo rehabilitation and empowerment before those not from Anambra state will be repatriated in an arrangement with their state government through the Ministries of Women Affairs and social development.

Recently too, no fewer than 200 beggars were arrested in and around Anambra state capital territory by a combined team of social workers and security agents led by the Ministry of women Affairs Anambra state.  

That day, beggars who ordinarily were blind, deaf and dumb saw, heard and spoke while running for their dear lives. At Abagana a blind woman with her guide was arrested but for the intervention of vigilante members who were still trying to get identities of those trying to pick the blind beggar, the woman with her guide picked race , seeing and causing those that wanted to arrest her.

 

At Amawbia, a man from Nise who allegedly built good house and trains his children up to University levels with proceeds from his begging was arrested. He claimed that he can’t leave begging again until he dies. He should be in his early 70’s. He was however picked.

At Unizik junction and Eke Awka axis beggars ran as far as their legs can carry them, two young boys in their mid twenties were seen begging with all tenacity of purpose. They were bold.

They were accosted but the social workers were in for a real fight as they indeed resisted arrest but for the intervention of the combined efforts of the security operatives. They were well dressed with phones and carrying picture of a laminated woman called Chizoba from Nsukka claimed to be suffering from Cancer of the stomach with which they were begging. The young woman was not with them but at Enugu as they said.

They had no remorse of what they did and wondered why anybody should arrest them when they are doing a legitimate business registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). Indeed Corporate Beggars.

The two corporate beggars gave their names as  Anichebe Okwudili from Eziagu and Onyebuchi Ona who initially gave his name as Ekene but later claimed he is from Udi both in Enugu state were begging for Humanitarian Welfare Rescue Mission with Headquarters in Abuja but the documents they used for begging  bearing picture of a woman identified as Chizoba from Nsukka bears a name that goes with ‘Good Seed International Association’ . They gave the name of their Boss at Enugu as Mesika and that every social worker knows him.

Their boss at Onitsha as Pastor with Office at Isabella hotel Onitsha but efforts to get the pastor was a bite confusing as at news time. The man at Enugu switched off after initially begging through phone that his boys be released as his organization is registered by corporate Affairs for begging. They each got the lowest of N11, 000 every day and the proceeds of their begging will be divided between them and the organization as well as the patients they were begging for.

 

But Useni Mohammed from Niger Republic who said he is 16 years has a father who is a driver at Onitsha that gives him mandate on how much to get everyday from begging. That he has a twin and he is known with his sister as ‘’Emeka and Amaka’’, adding that they were born in Onitsha.

Another beggar Mr Joseph Eze from Achi ,Enugu state informed that he is a businessman based in Yola before he had an accident that forced him into begging sequel to lack of assistance. He appealed for N300, 000 to be given to him from the Anambra state government to get him self fixed in a business but warned that nobody should give him anything less than N300,000 as it would not be enough for him.

Director Social Welfare Ministry of women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs Rose Udeagbara said they were taken off the streets during operation clear the streets of the capital city off beggars and destitute but have been sent to the vocational and rehabilitation center Nteje.

Mrs Udeagbara informed that at the vocational center the social workers took documentation of the arrested members to enable them either rehabilitate them in any of the skill acquisition centers in the state or repatriate and reunite them with their families.

She admitted that some will be sent to Psychiatric hospital before reintegration denying that students were abandoned by government as speculated. She reiterated that Governor Peter Obi’s government since seven years ago has not closed his eyes on any of the sectors or segment of the society including mad people.

Director of Social Welfare in the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Lady Rose Udeagbara announced this during the 2014 beggars and destitute raid yesterday.

Udeagbara informed that majority of the over 180 beggars taken off the streets in the major cities of Awka, Amawbia, Enugwu-Ukwu, Abagana, Ogidi, Nkpor, Onitsha, Nnobi and Nnewi, Ekwulobia and Umunze were not from Anambra state. She said findings showed most of them are from Jigawa, Kano, Kaduna, Yobe, Plateau and other northern states while others are from Cross River, Abia, Rivers, Imo as well as Ebonyi and Enugu states.

  

Lady Udeagbara led the delegation of campaign against begging and taking off the beggars and destitute off the streets, and lamented the rampant usage of children by their parents to beg to make money for their upkeep.

She claimed that men of the underworld in Onitsha use begging as a strategy to carry out their devilish activities at night stressing that the Anambrarians among them will be trained to acquire skill on tailoring, shoemaking, cooking and home management, breed making among others. The training empowerment she said is not restricted to indigenes but the non indigenes would be in consultation with their home states after rehabilitation.

  

The Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Lady Henrietta Azuka Agbata advised parents to desist from using their children as a money making venture.

Agbata said , “It is not right to use a child for begging and whenever we get such case, we get at those parents through their children and charge them to state family court. I see such parents as very lazy parents. Let us stop abusing these children and stop trampling on their rights. Let us strive to send them to school, so that they will be beneficial to us and the society.”

Commissioner Agbata further explained that the raid on beggars is Governor Peter Obi’s effort to not only sanitize the state but to empower some of them frustrations led to begging as well as to ensure free flow of traffics on our roads adding that the sick ones among them will be given free medicare.

 Agbata insisted that families should take care of members of their families that are challenged either mentally or otherwise to avoid beggars constituting nuisance in the state.

 Agbata reiterated that Anambra state indigenes are not known with begging and that most of the beggars came from neighboring states, influencing Anambra indigenes to start learning to beg.  

 

‘’You can see that many of these beggars are from outside Anambra mainly Enugu, Ebonyi and Akwa Ibom states. We have most people from the Northern Nigeria and other states based on the previous raids even some came in from Niger Republic.

 ‘’They are causing nuisance and littering the streets even when Anambra state indigenes are not used to begging,  we would repatriate non indigenes and rehabilitate those that are in that category by empowering them with skills within six months. They should stop molesting people and people should try and contain their family members.

 Later at the rehabilitation camp,  Lady Udeagbara vented anger on one Mrs. Nkechinyere Okeke, who is using her daughter, Ginika Okeke to beg, “This woman was taken off the street last year in Awka. We rehabilitated her and out of the magnanimity of the state government, she was employed as a staff of Anambra State Waste Management Agency (ASWAMA) in the Ministry of Environment to help her train her child. But, she is stubborn, after all that, she is still begging with that child” she lamented.

The beggar Okeke admitted the allegation that she is being arrested for the second time but says she is begging to pay her child’s balance of N80,000 and urged the state government to assist her, allegation  viewed to be untrue as she did not explain what the money is for.

When she was caught last year, she gave her name then as Alice Okeke , 37 years old from Nimo and a staff of ASWAMA. She uses her disabled daughter to beg and claimed they got N500 everyday as transport after her sweeping job.

   For Prisoners, yes equipment worth several millions were supplied them but for beggars, does the government really have enough equipment to rehabilitate these high numbers of beggars in the state?

Principal of the Vocational/Rehabilitation Center, Nteje, Mrs. Chinyere Iguomu answers this way: “We only allow them to stay here for a day or two before discharging them. Although,  it is not enough to acquire the needed skill but government is not bringing anything for their upkeep and we have written many memos but no response from the government’’.

  Iguomu said although the home has about 32 students who are challenged and about 18 destitute, they were on holiday then.

It is however observed that the students were not been taken care of by the state government as they were promised. The students although challenged and destitute still fend for themselves, sources revealed.

Whatever that means, the principal knows better, but the Commissioner dismissed the allegations as unfounded.

The raid tagged,’’ clearing of beggars/destitute off the streets, roads , markets and public places was commended by a public commentator/ Market 3 Eke Awka Management Committee member , Mr Onyenwe Anagor. He said that what the Governor Peter Obi led state government is doing to clear beggars from the streets is good because they constitute nuisance.  He however appealed to the state government to rehabilitate the beggars and destitute.

If the Governor Peter Obi’s administration has succeeded in keeping beggars and destitute off the major streets in the state, those in charge of them at the rehabilitation center should do well to bring to the attention of the relevant authorities to look into the challenges at the rehabilitation center for a perfect job.

Written by Odogwu Emeka Odogwu, of the Nation Newspapers for odogwuemekaodogwu.com

Caption of pictures 

1. Okwudili Anichebe and Onyebuchi Onah, corporate beggars

2. Raided Beggars in Trucks going to Nteje Rehabilitation centers

3 Some Beggars from Niger Republic, Begging with their children

4 Other beggars

1. Child Beggar , Ginika Okeke used by her mother for begging

2. Some beggars arrested during the raid

3. Beggars in action begging at New Motor Parts Nkpor during the raid

4. Children being used to beg by their parents