The Lagos State Government has ordered beggars to leave the metropolis in their own interest.
Commissioner of Youth and Social Development, Mrs Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf, said the government would take drastic action against those who did not leave on their own.
The commissioner said there was an ongoing campaign against the menace of street begging on radio stations to sensitise people on the need to stop it.
Mrs Akinbile-Yussuf urged residents to stop giving alms to beggars in order to discourage them, saying: “We have been campaigning against street begging on radio since January.
The campaign will run for three months following which the state government will take more drastic actions against perpetrators because there is anti-begging law in the state.
“What we are also saying is that people should stop giving alms to beggars on the streets because many of them are not beggars in the real sense of it. Many street beggars have been discovered to engage in criminal activities and hard drugs.”
