Members of the Lagos State House of Assemblyt, on Tuesday, debated the possibility of enacting legislation to combat street begging throughout the state.
If passed, the law would also make it illegal for residents to encourage street begging. Giving money to a street beggar would be a crime in this case.
Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, Speaker of the House, who branded street begging as a threat to the state, concurred with MPs in plenary that criminal elements have taken over the streets disguised as beggars.
Reacting to the motion brought by Hon. Abiodun Orekoya and some of his colleagues, Dr. Obasa noted how previous administrations in the state made efforts to curb street begging, but that the challenge had not abated.
Obasa emphasised the need for a law that would criminalise street begging and also penalise individuals who give money to beggars on the roads.
“When we address the source, then we can curb it. When you go on the road, you find children within the ages of five and six begging. It means there are established groups of people benefitting from this. They warehouse and provide for them.
“Beyond the child rights law, we should come up with another law that speaks to begging and giving. We must come up with genuine law and institutions that handle begging.
The Speaker said the proposed law should aim to establish a centre where individuals who wish to give alms can do so, while the centre would ensure that the alms reach those in need.
“The law will create a fund to be managed by people with integrity so that if you are in need, you would go there,” he said.
He said while this would help people fulfil their religious beliefs about alms giving, it would also help curb street begging, reduce crime on the road and promote greater responsibility among residents.
The Speaker said the smart city goal of the state cannot be achieved when beggars adorn the roads, inhibiting free movement and engaging in crime which include drug peddling and stealing from motorists.
He questioned how children as young as five or six manage to travel from other states to Lagos, suggesting that some individuals may be sponsoring and accommodating them.
Calling for a holistic approach to end the challenge, the Speaker said it was better to tackle it from the source which include discouraging giving directly to the beggars on the road.
Obasa also urged local government chairmen to come up with ideas to manage street trading rather than thinking of outrightly chasing traders off the streets.
“Street trading happens across the world. It is for our council chairmen to come up with ideas to better manage the activities of traders in their domains.
“How do you build a shop and put it at N30 million? What will the traders be selling there?
If you remove them all, where do you also want them to go?” He asked.
