Lagos govt arrests 62 street beggars, children in Ajah, Lekki

The Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps has arrested 62 people during an enforcement operation aimed at curbing street begging in the Ajah and Lekki areas of the state.

The Lagos State Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, disclosed this in a post on X, stating that the operation resulted in the apprehension of 29 street beggars and 33 children allegedly being exploited for illegal street begging.

Wahab said the individuals arrested during the exercise had been handed over to the relevant authorities for further action.

“A total of 62 individuals, comprising 29 street beggars and 33 children allegedly being exploited for illegal street begging, were apprehended by operatives of the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps during an enforcement operation in the Ajah and Lekki areas of Lagos State.

“They have all been transferred to the appropriate authorities for necessary action,” he wrote.

The latest arrests came days after the corps apprehended 215 street beggars in a separate enforcement operation conducted in different parts of Lagos.

Wahab had disclosed in an X post on Saturday that the earlier exercise was part of intensified efforts to tackle street begging and the activities of street urchins.

According to the commissioner, those apprehended comprised 152 males, 46 females and 17 young adults.

He said the enforcement exercises were part of the state government’s broader efforts to maintain public order, improve environmental sanitation and create safer and more orderly public spaces across Lagos.