There is a trend I noticed recently: the geometric increase in the number of 'beggars' we have in the country. You see them by the roadside, in the market places, on the streets, in the bus parks and even at the train stations (at least the few we have in the country).
I've often wondered why this is so. The annoying part of this is the fact that some of them are healthy, even though they have some body parts missing.
The ones that are crippled are mostly those that stay by the roadside begging for alms, while the blind ones are usually led by their children or others close to them begging from street to street.
I personally don't see their disability as a yardstick to degrade themselves to such a despicable level, after all there are so many disabled ones in the country who have done quite well for themselves even more than 'able' people. If you watched the paralympics, you would understand this.
Most of them are so proud about the fact that they are beggars that they have taken it as a lifelong gig. Most of them even get married as beggars and have introduced their wives and children to the 'trade'.
It is no longer a shocking scene for me when I see kids running around in traffic gridlocks knocking on cars and begging for alms while their parents sit by the roadside watching and pointing to them which cars to knock on, like a kinda training process.
When I served in the northern part of the country, I realized that there were even two more categories of beggars in addition to the ones mentioned above. My friends and I called them 'Junior Almajiri's' and 'Senior Almajiri's'.
The Junior Almajiri's are the kids (usually young boys between ages 5 and 15) who go around begging for food, money, clothes or whatever you could offer them. I was shocked one day when I threw away a pot of soured spaghetti and before I knew what was happening, these Junior Almajiri's had already 'attacked' the food, eating it directly from the waste bin. I always wondered if they've never heard of food poisoning or if such food had a negative impact on their health. My friend pitied these kids so much that whenever we had food we wouldn't eat anymore, she began warming it before dishing it into disposables for them, at least it prevented them from eating it directly from the waste bin.
The Senior Almajiri's are in another class of their own. You see them every morning sitting in front of the houses of the 'Mai Kudi's' (rich men) in the society. These ones don't beg per se, they collect or receive. It's their right! Or at least they act like it is. That would be the only reason why they are usually found at those houses around 8am to 10 or 11am everyday.
I was told that they were usually given money everyday, that was why they were always there. In a bid to satisfy my curiosity, I went there one morning to see things for myself, and when the 'money-sharing' period came, I saw a man (obviously the Alhaji's aide) with bundles of cash, going line by line and doling it out to these people. I was like, 'Wow, this is for real!' But when I looked closely and saw the amount given to each person, disappointment was registered on my face. Guess how much was given to each of them? N20. No, NOT Two Thousand Naira, TWENTY NAIRA!
I was shocked!
So many questions ran through my mind. Is it because of 20naira these men left their homes, sometimes in the early morning cold, and sat there, sometimes for hours? What effect would 20naira have on such a man, ignoring the fact that he might have a wife or wives and children, which is most likely the case? How would 20naira help in training or providing for the numerous children he 'produced' from his numerous wives? Why would these men even give birth to children since they know they wouldn't be able to take care of them?
In my own opinion (which I'm sure I'm entitled to), I would say this trend has given birth to terrorism, especially in this country.
I talked to some elites in the North, and I was told that the terrorism we see in the country today is as a result of lack of education. I totally agree with that summation.
It is only stark illiterates that would condone or even carry out the wanton killing of innocent people including women and children as we see in the country today. Why? For no just cause!
Every radical movement I've seen or read about have had a just cause. But this is the most preposterous movement/cause I've ever seen. And to think that these bizarre acts are perpetrated against their own people? It is so annoying!
This situation has gotten so bad that some state governments (Kaduna and Lagos states) have placed a ban on beggars on the streets, but this didn't stop them because after just a few days, they went back to the streets.
I shake my head in disgust and ask: Is there a lasting solution to this menace in this country? What could be done so that the children of these beggars would have better opportunities to prevent them from being 'radicalized' by terrorists or tow the line of their parents?
I sincerely hope a lasting solution would be found in the nearest future and I pray that the perpetrators of terrorism in our beloved country 'repent' and change with the changing tide in the country.
By Dioxidane Images courtesy www.thecable.ng and www.informationng.comcc: Igwe Lalasticlala 3 Likes 
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