AD lauds El-Rufai, urges beggars to redirect skills

The Alliance for Democracy (AD), on Tuesday in Abuja, commended Gov. Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna state for the ban on street begging and hawking in the state.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls el-Rufa’i had on July 7, announced the ban on street hawking and begging across the state after a bomb blast in Zaria which claimed 26 lives and injured 32 persons.

National Chairman of AD, Mr Rafiu Salau, who gave the commendation in a statement, said that the ban would make the beggars to think of rendering services that would orovide livelihood for them and better mankind.

"Gov. El-Rufai of Kaduna has taken the right step to bring change to the state. Stopping beggars in the state will make them to think of rendering services that will yield them enough money to live very well.

"What the beggars need from the government is a training institute that will give them skills. If they can be trained, they will render services to the community and be productive to the economy,’’ he said.

He reiterated the need for the government to invest in the lives of beggars, adding that no one was useless to the society. "The government should invest in the change of the quality of lives of the beggars. Today, they beg to survive because they were denied access to skills and knowledge in the past.

"It is not late for a beggar without mental problems to develop his or her brain capacity. After the training, some will become stars in various fields like sports, music and entertainment.

"We need to replace the mentality of begging with that of skills for self-confidence. The governor should continue his programme of changing the orientation of begging in our community,’’ Salau added.