DIFFERENT KINDS OF BEGGARS YOU COME ACROSS ON THE STREET OF IBADAN

My Recent trips to Ibadan city had exposed me to see different types of beggars that I have not seen in any part of the country. Not that I don’t use to see them around me most especially in the Northern part of the country where I served but Ibadan beggars come with a kind of uniqueness that is funny ,pathetic , evidence of stack naked poverty and youthful laziness . when I raised this issue with my colleagues they told me that Ajumobi Government Environmental Renovation Programme had reduced the numbers of these beggars drastically that what I’m seen around are just fragments of beggars compared to pre-Ajumobi’s regime .
Despite the beauty of Ibadan, I present to you different types of beggars you encountered on the street of Ibadan.

-KID BEGGARS-
These kids are between the ages of 5-10 without any physical deformity basically begging for money. Sometimes, you see them in groups and sometimes you see them alone. I don’t think most of them are in school or probably they do begging after coming from school. Well, I can say this is as a result of poverty because you can never see a child from an average home to go on the street begging.

-ABLE BODY MEN BEGGARS-
It’s pathetic when you see a full grown man begging for arms from almost his child’s age mate. A man that is at least physically alright. I am not talking of cooperate and professional beggars like the ones that would always be stranded on the street of Lagos, men that are looking dirty, tattered and rough. Only God know these types of beggars’ problem, its poverty or more of mental problem?

FULANI BEGGARS-
If you don’t take a close look you may mistake them for a little Lebanese or oyinbo child .You see them dragging your clothes and trying to hold you by your hands. You see them mostly at Iwo road. They could either be male or female. If you look around very well you will see their mother sitting somewhere expecting returns from their “businesschilderen”. Well, only poverty could make a family migrate to another part of the country only for the sole aim of begging for alms.

-TRADITIONAL BEGGARS
This one is funny to me the first time I saw one. They put on pure white from head gear to their shoe then hold something like a baby’s toy that attracts attention with the sound. You hear them pray and simultaneously demand for money. I do see them around Ibadan very well. Most of them are female, you see the men occasionally. What can we say it’s the cause of this my people. I don’t joke with them anyway because they may be real herbalist anyway .


-DISABLE-
Different deformities from critical to minor, you see them all around. It’s a pity the kind of country we are. Some of them need urgent medical attention but it’s a pity they are on the road side .I have never been to all these developed countries oh, but I know this kind people could not be left on the street roaming around. Though I learnt there are homeless beggars but not people that need medical attention .

-FAMILY BEGGARS-
Its sadden to see a mother carrying one or more children by the road side begging for alms. The sight alone is pitiful. They are everywhere in Ibadan .i don’t want to belive parents rent their children to another mother for alms begging.

THE NORMAL MALAMS-
Just as the way you need to be afraid if you get to any town or city in the world without our brothers from the East, so also malam alms beggars from the North in Nigeria. You see them at every corner in Ibadan city.

Can alms begging (poverty) be eradicated in Nigeria ?

lalasticlala @

All I see is begging strategies...