ABUJA CLEANUP: Wike Orders Mass Enforcement Against Beggars, Scavengers, Herders In Federal Capital

ABUJA — The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has ordered a full-scale crackdown on street beggars, scavengers, illegal street traders, and open herders within the Abuja metropolis and its surrounding satellite towns, declaring that the nation’s capital will no longer tolerate social nuisances and security hazards.

The directive, executed under a multi-agency security operation tagged “Operation Sweep Abuja,” empowers a joint task force comprising law enforcement officers, military personnel, and officials of the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) to arrest, profile, and evacuate offenders from public spaces.

According to official statements from the FCT Administration, individuals apprehended during the ongoing sweep will undergo security profiling, after which non-resident destitutes and street loiterers will be repatriated to their respective home states.

Security Concerns and Legal Mandate

The administration defended the drastic measures as a necessary step to curb rising urban criminality—particularly “one-chance” commercial transport robbery syndicates—and to enforce compliance with the Abuja Master Plan.

In communications issued through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, the minister emphasized that informal loitering and illegal street activities had become covers for intelligence gathering by criminal elements.

“Our nation’s capital should be a secure symbol of pride and beauty, not a site for street beggars and scavengers, most of whom act as agents for criminal elements,” the administration stated, adding that public spaces, bridge underpasses, and major traffic intersections must be cleared immediately.

The enforcement relies heavily on powers provisions contained in the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) Act, which prohibits unauthorized structures, open defecation, street hawking, and illegal grazing within designated urban zones.

Judicial Backing for the Crackdown

The enforcement drive comes on the heels of a major legal victory for the FCT Administration at the Federal High Court in Abuja.

Justice James Omotosho dismissed a N500 million fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by human rights advocacy groups on behalf of displaced scavengers and beggars. The court ruled that public begging and unapproved roadside activities are not protected under Chapter IV of the Nigerian Constitution, holding that fundamental rights are not absolute when public order, sanitation, and safety are at risk.

Justice Omotosho affirmed that the FCT Minister acts within his statutory duties when enforcing environmental and urban planning laws, noting that permitting unchecked street loitering risked turning the Federal Capital Territory into a haven for criminal activity.

Operational Focus Areas

The Joint Task Force has concentrated initial enforcement sweeps along major arterial routes and commercial districts, including:

• Central Business District (CBD) & Maitama: Directing immediate clearance of roadside hawkers, scavengers near waste points, and informal car watchers.
• Wuse, Garki, and Airport Road Interchanges: Target zones for dismantling illegal motor parks and flushing out “one-chance” syndicates.
• Outer Ring Roads & Satellite Corridors (Kubwa, Nyanya, Lugbe): Crackdown on open cattle grazing along expressways and illegal makeshift settlements under highway bridges.

FCTA officials maintained that while skills acquisition and rehabilitation centers remain open for indigent residents willing to learn trades, those who refuse social integration and return to street loitering will face strict legal prosecution and expulsion from the territory.

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