PWDs beg el-Rufai to free 140 blind persons

Why we demolished beggar’s accommodation, by Kaduna govt
Association for the Blind in Kaduna North Council of Kaduna State has called on the state government to release over 140 of their members arrested on the streets.

The Public Relations Officer (PRO), Sadiku Ahmad, while briefing journalists at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Secretariat, Kaduna, lamented that their members were arrested by security agents and taken to Hajj camp in Mando, lgabi Council of the state.

According to him, more than 800 Persons With Disabilities (PWDs) have been chased out of their colony by security operatives in the state.

His words: “The action was precipitated by Kaduna State government. Our members were not only maltreated, but also forced out of the house using armed security agents.

“We have been living in Kaduna for the past 30 to 40 years. Some of the political office holders were born before our eyes; so we are indigenes. We don’t have any other place to go and it is unfortunate for government to eject us from our accommodation without giving us alternative.”

The group appealed to the government to be compassionate and to provide them with accommodation and means of livelihood.

Begging is not an enterprise, they affirmed, arguing that they were begging because of the circumstances they find themselves in.

They, therefore, appealed to government to train them in skills to enable them cater for themselves and their families.

But the Commissioner for Human Services and Social Development, Hafsat Baba, noted that the state had already banned street begging, warning that anyone found on the street would be arrested.

She further explained that the beggars poorly utilised the accommodation given to them by the government, which led to their ejection and demolition of the building.

Baba lamented that the beggars contributed to child abuse and dirty environment in the state.