Edo State is to commence the arrest and prosecution of parents of out-of-school children as part of efforts to tackle the menace of street begging, Governor Godwin Obaseki says.
Obaseki added that people arrested from where they are begging and evacuated to farm settlements to work, and if they don’t want to work, they will be sent back to where they come from.
The governor, while playing host to Muslim faithful in Benin City after the successful completion of the Ramadan fast, said his administration believes that basic education is the right of every Edo child and assured of his government’s resolve to link education with street begging and street children.
“In the next few weeks or months, we will not allow street begging in Edo anymore. We have farm settlements and we need hands and labour to cultivate foods. People arrested from where they are begging will be evacuated to the farm settlements to work and if they don’t want to work, they will be sent back to where they come from.
Read also: 2023: It is turn of Southern part to produce next President — Akeredolu
“We have just employed 3,062 teachers in the rural communities as they have just finished their training. We will make sure those hard-to-reach areas in the riverine communities will have teachers to teach the children. We are training them now to work in those communities,” Obaseki said.
He, however, charged the Muslim faithful on tolerance to be able to overcome the economic pressure on the land
“As a government, we will never deceive our people because the people gave us power through the electoral process to lead them.
“Our administration is working hard to create more jobs and opportunities for the people of the State and ensure life is better for them. We are also creating a peaceful environment, infrastructure and security to make the State safe,” he said.
Earlier, Abdulfatai Enabulele, chief Imam of Benin Central Mosque, commended the governor for his developmental strides across all sectors of the state, as well as his efforts at ending street begging in the state.
