The administration of Gov. Rotimi Amaechi in Rivers State has joined their Lagos counterpart in the illegal and forced removal of non Rivers State indigenes from the state capital Port Harcourt reports the News Agency of Nigeria.
Rotimi Amaechi’s government emboldened by the actions of Gov. Fashola of Lagos State said the removal of those they termed beggars and destitute from streets in the state is a bid to rid the state of the menace of begging, destitution and lunacy.
Astonishingly this illegal and inhumane policy of forcible removal from one part of Nigeria to another or their perceived state of origin was confirmed by Stella Toby, Permanent Secretary in the state’s Ministry of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation. She made this breathtaking announcement in an interview with newsmen in Port Harcourt on Monday.
She said the beggars, destitute people and mentally-ill people constituted problems on some major streets and roads in the state. Ms. Toby said the State Government had set up a special committee charged with the responsibility of restoring sanity on major areas of the state. She was quoted as saying “Most of the beggars are from neighbouring states (Abia, Imo, Delta and Bayelsa) and I can assure you that they will be removed from the streets and repatriated back to their respective states,” she said.
The Chairman of the committee, Mina Jamabo, said that about 113 beggars, destitute and lunatics had already been removed from the streets. He said that some of the affected persons had been taken to the state’s rehabilitation centres for treatment.
Ms. Jamabo said that non-indigenes had since been repatriated to their various states, while the indigenes would be treated by the government until they were fit to re-unite with their families.
