Wike launches crackdown to rid Abuja of beggars, “one-chance” syndicates, miscreants

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has ordered a sweeping crackdown on street beggars, illegal traders, scavengers, and criminal syndicates operating within Abuja and its satellite towns.

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According to a statement issued Wednesday by Lere Olayinka, the minister’s senior special assistant on public communications and social media, a special joint task force has already commenced operations across the capital under a security initiative tagged “Operation Sweep Abuja.”

The clampdown, Mr Wike said, is aimed at restoring order, safety, and aesthetic integrity to Nigeria’s capital city and curbing the rising menace of “one-chance” robbery gangs and other social vices associated with street loitering.

“In line with the Abuja Environmental Protection Act and other relevant laws, the FCT Minister, Barrister Nyesom Wike, has directed the immediate evacuation of miscreants, street beggars and traders, scavengers, and other criminal elements from the FCT,” the statement read.

“Our nation’s capital should be a secured symbol of pride and beauty, not a site for street beggars and scavengers, most of whom are agents of criminal elements,” Mr Olayinka added.

Under the new directive, individuals caught begging, trading on the streets, scavenging, or loitering will be arrested, profiled, and repatriated to their respective home states.

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The statement emphasised that the exercise would be carried out in collaboration with security agencies and relevant FCT departments and agencies.

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“Security of lives and properties of residents of the FCT is of paramount importance to the government. We must all join hands to achieve a safer Abuja,” Mr Olayinka said, urging residents to report suspicious activity via dedicated hotlines.

The directive marks the latest in Mr Wike’s ongoing push to sanitise Abuja since assuming office, following earlier efforts to demolish illegal structures and reclaim public spaces.

While the operation has already begun, it is unclear how long the exercise will last or what measures will be put in place to ensure long-term enforcement.