The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) said it has evacuated a total of 889 beggars and destitutes from major streets of Abuja in the past three months.

The administration, through the Ministerial directives, has intensified its crackdown on black spots around the city centre, targeting both beggars and other destitutes.

Head of FCT Enforcement, Ukachi Adebayo, who was part of the Operation sweep squad on Monday, confirmed the evacuation.

“In the past three months, we were able to evacuate about 835 of them. So, if we add it to the number we have now, it’s about 889.

“Those evacuated are being profiled and moved to government rehabilitation centres, where officials say they will receive welfare support and vocational training.

“The operation has already covered Maitama, Asokoro, Garki, Wuse and Gwarinpa, with enforcement expected to continue in other hotspots.

“But the evacuation effort is unfolding against the backdrop of a disturbing intelligence report linking criminal syndicates to the same population the FCTA is trying to remove from the streets”, she added.

Also speaking, Secretary of the FCT Command and Control Centre, Dr Peter Olumuji, lamented that intelligence reports revealed that criminal networks are now using some of the street beggars, physically challenged persons, for their illicit activities.

He said, “ The sad thing is that, as vulnerable as they have become, they have also become a useful tool in the hands of criminal elements.

“From intelligence we have gathered over time, they use them to courier illicit drugs, especially at night. Who would suspect that a physically challenged person could courier illicit drugs? But they use them to do that.