Muslim media group wants begging banned in 36 states

The Muslim Media Watch Group of Nigeria (MMWG) has called on all state governments in the country to ban street-begging. 

It further urged the 19 northern states, where it noted begging for alms is highly dominant to outlaw begging except in places of worship.

The group in a statement by its National Coordinator, Alhaji Ibrahim Abdullahi pointed out that Islam is totally against begging for alms, adding that the idea of lining-up on Nigeria’s major streets in the state capitals and main towns, in motor-parks, restaurants and petrol filling stations should be stopped.

“To continue to watch the situation unattended is to live with a time-bomb that can explode anytime.

“In fact, the current insecurity in the country can partly be blamed on the lackadaisical attitude of the state governments of northern Nigeria to the issue of street begging.

“Some of them are vulnerable to being recruited for insurgency and terrorism. Therefore, as we search for solutions to insecurity, we must target the lazy and terrible youths who are involved in begging,” Abdullahi stated

The group commended the Kaduna, Kano and Nassarawa state governments for banning street-begging and urged other states to follow suit.

It added: “Islamic religious teachers supporting begging have limited knowledge and must be ignored. As a matter of fact, with ministries of social development in all states in Nigeria, a careful planning can be evolved whereby genuinely poor, old people and people with any form of disability can be catered for instead of encouraging begging as a means of livelihood.

“Parents and guardians who are truly poor can be helped by the state governments through taking responsibility for their children’s education, clothing, feeding and general welfare.

“The abdication of this process and lack of planning for the less-privileged among us by all state governments brought us to where we are today.”