Why we turned to begging, sleeping on streets — Destitute evacuated in Oyo tell their stories

Last Thursday, at Akinyele Resettlement Centre in Akinyele Local Government Area of Oyo State, 334 beggars, street urchins and destitute persons, both young and old, who had been picked from different parts of Ibadan stepped out, one after the other, from two Omi Titun buses.

They filed into the wide space within the serene camp built by the state government about four years ago to accommodate such persons.

As they sat in the available spaces, some of them, familiar with one another, engaged in conversations. Others wore solemn looks, deep in thought. Among them were children moving around in excitement, oblivious of what lay ahead.

The evacuation from the streets back to the camp was a cleanup exercise carried out by the Oyo State Rule of Law Enforcement Authority (OYRLEA) in line with its mandate to ensure a cleaner environment.

Alongside OYRLEA was an enforcement team comprising the Ministry of Environment, the Oyo State Environmental Task Force, the Oyo State Road Traffic Maintenance Authority (OYRTMA), the Oyo State Waste Management Authority (OYWMA), the Oyo State police command, the Amotekun Corps and the Joint Security Task Force, codenamed Operation Burst.

Before the commencement of enforcement two days earlier, Saturday Tribune learnt that OYRLEA and the team had visited the camp on Monday to inspect and confirm that it was in good condition and habitable.

Arrested on Tuesday and Wednesday were those who engaged in indiscriminate roadside trading and occupation of setbacks, illegal vehicle parking, sale of vehicles on setbacks, among others.

Last Thursday, the team moved through Idi Ape, Iwo Road, Airport–Gbagi Road, Gate, NTA Road, Mokola, Sango and Ojoo to evacuate the destitute, after which they were taken to the resettlement centre.

Speaking on the cleanup exercise, the chairperson of OYRLEA, Justice Aderonke Adekemi Aderemi (rtd), said that the Authority was simply carrying out its mandate as stipulated by law, through an operation tagged ‘Clean Up Ibadan’.

She said: “After checking the Resettlement Centre on Monday to be sure it is befitting, we started the cleanup exercise on Tuesday from Airport Road to Isebo to Gbagi to the old and new Ife Roads.

“We also went to where traders were selling their wares on the road, medians and setbacks. They were arrested and, along with their wares, were taken before the Tribunal.

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“We also arrested those who illegally parked their vehicles on the roads. The same happened to tricycle and motorcycle riders. In addition, we arrested those selling vehicles on road setbacks and impounded the vehicles.

“On the third day, which is today, Thursday, we went round Ibadan city to clear the destitute. We picked 334 of them and conveyed them to the destitute’s camp at Akinyele.”

At the centre, officials of the Ministry of Environment were seen distributing food packs containing jollof rice and fish, as well as sachets of water, to the evacuees as lunch.

Saturday Tribune went round the evacuees to find out the reasons they resorted to begging or homelessness, which made them sleep under bridges, in open stalls and in corners. Among the shocking stories was that of a female teenager, Aisha, who gave her age as 18. She had been sleeping in the open under the bridge for three months. She also revealed she had a lover among the street urchins and was already six weeks pregnant for him.

With her mouth constantly filled with saliva due to her pregnancy, Aisha, who claimed to hail from Ode-Omu in Osun State, disclosed that she ran away from home some months ago and started living under the Iwo Road bridge in Ibadan, where she met and started dating Ismail Olamilekan.

Aisha told Saturday Tribune that she didn’t know why she left her parents’ home, since they never mistreated her.

She said: “I deliberately left home about three months ago, but I don’t understand it myself. I must have been chased from home with juju. I was not reprimanded by my parents.”

The teenager also explained how she became a street boy’s lover: “I met Ismail Olamilekan, a.k.a. Omoga, at a spot where he usually did some labour, offloading hideskin from vehicles at a filling station at Iwo Road. I’ve told him that I’m pregnant. I expected my monthly flow on September 15, but it has not come till now.”

When asked how she managed her hygiene among the many males sleeping on the streets, Aisha said she usually bathed early in the morning before daylight. She admitted, however, that she last bathed a day before she was evacuated.

On how she survived, Aisha disclosed that she used to hawk sachet water. She admitted that her lover smoked marijuana but claimed she had told him she didn’t like it. “He is gradually stopping,” she added.

Aisha, the second child of her parents, also admitted she had never contacted them since she left home, as she had no access to their phone numbers.

Her lover, Ismail a.k.a. Omoga, aged 25, said he earned a living by offloading hideskin (ponmo) from vehicles. He claimed he slept on the streets because the job was usually done late at night into the early hours of the morning. He revealed he rented accommodation but hardly used it due to the nature of his work.

“Our work was strenuous today (last Thursday) and was disrupted by the rain that fell throughout the night. I and others decided to sleep under the bridge until we would go home at daybreak,” Ismail said.

He, however, could not explain why he was still sleeping under the bridge by 10am. He admitted that Aisha stayed with him there and got pregnant.

Ismail confessed to smoking marijuana, saying it was to energise him for his strenuous job.

Also, a Hausa woman, Aisha Abdullahi, said she went begging simply to get money to eat.

“If the government doesn’t want Hausa people to beg for alms in Oyo State, then we should be given money to start a business. Without that, we will continue to beg. We are hungry; the government should not allow us to die of hunger,” she said.

Another destitute, Fadesayo Kayode, from Ilesa, Osun State, said he used to work with a wheelbarrow to carry loads. He disclosed that he had never lived with his father since childhood, as he only knew his mother.

“My mother is dead, and I’m her only child,” Kayode, who stammers, explained. His friends at the Centre described him as a “tough boy” who once lived with his grandmother but later opted for the streets. Kayode confirmed this, adding that he was also a hemp smoker.

A 60-year-old woman, Maria Adedeji Matthew, from Ago-Are, explained why she became a beggar: “I beg for alms to survive. I used to pray for passengers at motor parks, and they would give me money. It has never been by force.”

Giving a glimpse into her past, she said: “I once lived in Cotonou in the Republic of Benin, and also in Togo. I later moved to the Majidun area of Lagos State, but the place was raided by the government, and I ended up in Ibadan.”

When asked about her children, Madam Matthew replied: “I have just one child. His name is Opeyemi Matthew. He should be about 35 years old and is in Ibadan. He knows I’m in Ibadan but is not aware of where I stay.”

When asked about her health, the woman responded: “I am okay, nothing is wrong with me except my right leg (showing this writer), which was disfigured after a vehicle hit me here in Ibadan. I can still walk with it, but it’s already deformed.

“The only other issue is that I may pee on myself if I don’t quickly get a place to urinate, but that is not frequent. Even here, I quickly stood up to ease myself because I saw a place to do so.”

Speaking about where she used to sleep before her evacuation, Mrs Matthew said: “I used to sleep beside a shop, from where I was picked. I don’t know the name of the place very well. I had been staying there for about three years.”

On how she survived, she explained: “I ate with the money I got from good Samaritans. I even bought the cloth I’m wearing with such money.”

When asked about her family members back in Ago-Are, she said: “There is no one to take care of me again. My parents are dead. My father’s name was Kokumo Sekoni. I was named Maimuna at birth, but about 51 years ago, I became a Christian and was baptised Maria. I got married at about 25 and had only one child. His name is Opeyemi Matthew. His father is a medical doctor in Ilorin, Kwara State, who also sold medical equipment. He is from Kogi State.”

Another destitute, Ayomide Gabriel, from Isoko in Delta State, narrated how he became homeless: “I used to come to Ibadan from Lagos to beg for alms. I came again on Saturday, September 27. I usually sat beside Northerners to solicit help. After collecting some money, I would leave Ibadan for my residence at Isawo in Ikorodu.”

Giving his reason for begging despite being able-bodied, Mr Gabriel, 63, said: “It was because I had nothing else to do. Before, I was selling goods, but everything collapsed.”

Niyi Abiodun, a 45-year-old right-arm amputee, also shared his story: “I’m from Ile-Ife in Osun State. I don’t sleep on the street. I usually come from Ife to Ibadan to beg for alms to feed my four children. I was forced into this situation after a member of the Odu’a People’s Congress (OPC) shot me in the arm, which later turned gangrenous and had to be amputated. He signed an agreement to compensate me but never honoured it.

“I couldn’t take care of myself and my children, so I decided to beg. I used to come to Ibadan every two days. I made between N10,000 and N15,000 by going from one motor park to another. I would return home the same day, rest the following day, and come back again.”

He said he had been begging since 2016. When asked why he had not saved to start a business, he said he was incapacitated with just one arm.

“My wife left me when I was in the hospital. She told me she couldn’t cope with my condition and left, but I didn’t allow her to take the children. My mother helped me care for them until she died. My firstborn is 17, the twins are 14, and the youngest is nine.

“I couldn’t remarry. Who will marry a poor amputee? My worry is how to care for my children. That is why I turned to begging.”

Recalling the incident that led to his disability, Niyi alleged that he was kidnapped by the OPC man, Muri, who shot him during a ritual attempt at Omi Adio in December 2014. He claimed Muri wanted to sell his body parts. Though Muri later confessed and agreed to pay compensation, Niyi said it never happened. He heard later that the man was arrested for another violent crime.

It will be recalled that the state government had first relocated the destitute, street urchins and beggars to the resettlement centre in 2021, with assurances of care for their wellbeing.

At the time, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Inclusion, Alhaja Faosat Sanni, told journalists that kitchens, food, mattresses, mats, toilets and other household items had been provided at the centre to aid their living.

Saturday Tribune, however, learnt that despite repeated evacuations, many of the evacuees often left the facility, with only a few choosing to remain there.