People have various reasons why they go out to beg on the streets; Aisha Sulaiman, told Saturday Tribune during the week in Ibadan, Oyo State that she started begging because her husband had divorced her in Kano State some months ago.
The mother of one who is in her early 20s, believed that her time in her husband’s house came to an end and that was why he divorced her.
Though they do not find pleasure in begging, she said they had to engage in it because of the need to cater for themselves and their children.
“Anyone you see here, just know he or she is not here for enjoyment. For some, it is old age and they do not have anyone to take care of them and that is why they came here to beg.
For some women, it was as a result of divorce (saki) that they started beggingin order to look for what to take care of their children with.For me, I came here because I was divorced by my husband some months ago. I had to come here to fend for myself and my child,” she said.
Aisha said she desired to remarry again.However, she revealed that if her ex-husband comes back again and is willing to pay her bride price again, she would go back to him.
“He divorced me for no reason; I guess my time in his house came to an end that was why. And right now, the only thing I wish for is to remarry again but if my husband wants to take me back again and he pays my bride price all over again and plans a wedding, then I will go back,” she revealed.
She added that some women started begging after they got divorced to buy time for their children to grow up before they could remarry.
“For some, it’s possible the divorce was quite messy and they were left with the responsibility of their children and most times the children are still very small. For others, they lost their family and had no one to rely on, so they just came here to beg.
“And some of the women after the divorce, and being left with the children, they find it hard to remarry so they start begging while the children grow up and start schooling or get to marriageable age to marry them off so that they (the mothers) can marry again,” she added.
That is why Aisha is out with her son begging however, she told Saturday Tribune that people have various reasons why they started begging even as they wished to be with their loved ones at home.
“People have different reasons why they are out begging on the streets. This is not something we find pleasure in doing, it is our condition that pushed us here. We would also love to be at home with our family and loved ones too,” she said.
On how she started begging in Ibadan, she said her friend asked her to come as there was the possibility that she could meet someone who would marry her.
“After my husband divorced me in Kano, one of my friends said I should come to Ibadan to beg that I could make something or even meet someone to marry me and I agreed. So, she arranged a way for me to come and that was how I came to Ibadan,” she said.
She refused to disclose the reason why she did not go back to her parents after the divorce.
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