The Federal Capital Territory Administration has evacuated no fewer than 607 beggars and persons with mental health challenges from the streets of Abuja since July 2025, as authorities intensify efforts to sanitise the nation’s capital and tighten security.
The Head of Enforcement at the FCT Social Development Secretariat, Mrs Ukachi Adebayo, disclosed that the exercise was carried out by the Operation Sweep Abuja Clean team as part of a sustained clampdown on street begging and related social vices.
According to her, 583 of those evacuated were beggars, while 23 were identified as mentally challenged. She said those apprehended were counselled, documented and handed over to their respective state governments through liaison offices for onward rehabilitation.
Adebayo explained that the operation had become a continuous task, noting that many of those evacuated often found their way back to the streets.
“The reality is that the more we remove them, the more they resurface. Some are fleeing insecurity in their states and see Abuja as a safe haven, but our mandate remains clear: to take them off the streets and return them home for proper rehabilitation,” she said.
Raising further concern, the Acting Director of Social Welfare at the Secretariat, Mrs Gloria Onwuka, revealed that street begging in Abuja had increasingly assumed a commercial dimension, with children allegedly trafficked from other states to solicit alms.
She alleged that some women arrested while begging with children were not their biological mothers, adding that unsuspecting families often had no idea their children were being exploited.
“Begging is now organised like a business. Children are brought in very early, forced to beg all day and the proceeds handed over to others. We have uncovered several such cases,” Onwuka said.
On the security implications, the Secretary of the FCTA Command and Control Centre, Dr Peter Olumuji, described Operation Sweep as a multi-agency initiative involving security outfits and relevant government departments.
He said the operation, instituted by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, was aimed at ridding Abuja of beggars, miscreants, scavengers and other elements capable of undermining public safety.
Olumuji warned that street beggars could pose security risks, alleging that some acted as informants for criminal gangs, while others fell victim to kidnapping and ritual attacks.
“Beyond security concerns, their presence also degrades the image and aesthetics of the capital city,” he added.
The FCTA said the operation would be sustained, recalling that Wike had, in October 2024, publicly declared a crackdown on street begging, warning that Abuja must not degenerate into what he described as a “beggars’ city”.
