By Joyce Remi Babayeju
The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has condemned the increasing use of beggars and destitute individuals as illicit drug couriers in Abuja.
Secretary of the FCT Command and Control Centre, Dr. Peter Olumuji, made this known during the ongoing Operation Sweep enforcement exercise aimed at removing beggars, scavengers, and destitute individuals off the streets of the capital city.
Olumuji disclosed that intelligence reports indicated that criminal elements engage physically challenged people and street beggars as noctural couriers for illicit substances.
“The sad thing is that, as vulnerable as they have become, they have also become a useful tool in the hands of criminal elements.”
“From intelligence we have gathered over time, they use them to courier illicit drugs, especially in the nighttime. Who will suspect that a physically challenged person could courier illicit drugs? But they use them to do that,” he said.
Furthermore, Olumiji revealed that some individuals also serve as informants for criminal gangs operating within the FCT, thereby posing additional security threats to residents.
Enforcement personnel have encountered resistance during some operations, with suspects allegedly attacking officials using walking canes and other mobility aids, he noted.
However, FCTA has intensified efforts to sanitize the city and address growing public concern over street begging and insecurity.
Head of FCT Enforcement, Ulkacha Adebayo, also disclosed that 54 persons, comprising 45 adults and nine children, were evacuated during Monday’s operation.
The administration had removed a total of 889 destitute individuals from various parts of Abuja within the last three months, she added.
“In the past three months, we were able to evacuate about 835 of them. So, if we add it to the number we have now, it’s about 889,” she said.
Adebayo explained that those evacuated were being profiled and taken to government rehabilitation centres for welfare support and vocational training.
According to her the exercise was part of ongoing efforts by the FCT Administration to maintain orderliness and improve security across the capital city.
The operation has covered areas including Maitama, Asokoro, Garki, Wuse and Gwarinpa, and officials have said that under the directive of the FCT minister the exercise would continueu on a sustained basis.
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