Abuja residents lament increasing number of scavengers in neighbourhoods
MANY residents of the Federal Capital Territory have expressed concerns over increasing number of scavengers, also known as ‘ Baba Boola’, who loiter around neighbourhoods at odd hours, and the security risk they pose.
They appealed to the Federal Capital Territory Administration ( FCTA) to intensify its enforcement, limit their activities, and avail other means of disposing domestic waste.
According to them, rising cases of kidnapping and other related crimes can be linked to scavengers who move around unperturbed.
In recent times, major locations such as Bwari, Kubwa, Saburi, and Duste have had their neighbourhoods clustered by scavengers.
A concerned teacher in Bwari, Adaora Ezike, noted that Abuja is fast becoming a hotspot for kidnappers and other criminal elements due to its porous boundaries and security set up.
According to her, two major incidents of burglary were reportedly carried out by scavengers, and nothing has
been done to permanently end the menace.
Another resident, Dayo Amusa, who is a youth leader in Saburi, regretted the absence of an organised management to collect domestic waste. This flawed system, he said, empowers criminals.
“Previously, the Abuja environmental board was more organised. As long as there is no means of disposing of domestic waste, the scavengers will keep increasing in numbers. The evil these scavengers are capable of is limitless,” he said Another resident, Waziri Isah, blamed the rising insecurity in the North for the situation.
According to him, these young men used to be thriving farmers in their villages until the insurgency.
One of the scavengers, Ibrahim Dantata, said he embarked on the job to make ends meet.
He said: “There is no job. I have no education and I have no skill. Not every scavenger is a thief. I know people are ruining our reputation but we are all not bad. I am into this business because it helps me feed my four wives and nine children in Zamfara.”
Another scavenger, Kabiru M’uazu, who stays in Kubwa, said any scavenger caught stealing is disciplined.
He said: “We don’t tolerate
stealing among ourselves. Anybody who is caught stealing faces disciplinary actions by us. We either collect their truck or we go physical on them.”
But a security expert and Managing Partner at Nextier, Ndu Nwokolo, said the menace of scavengers in Abuja has exposed residents to pilfering, burglary, illegal surveillance, knife attacks, and hooliganism.
According to him, during odd hours, the scavengers inflict violence on innocent individuals and vandalise government properties.
He advised the Federal Capital Territory Administration to implement the ban on indiscriminate disposal of refuse, and scavenging.
He said: “The authorities should implement the ban, which should include moving these young people to skills acquisition centres or other sources of livelihood, while the waste management system in the city needs to be effective, thereby making their ( scavengers’) access to bins difficult.”
However, Deputy Director of Monitoring and Enforcement at the Abuja Environmental Protection Board ( AEPB), Kaka Bello, assured that the administration is committed to enforcing the ban on scavenging.
“The issue of scavengers, the ‘ Baba boola’, is an issue we are battling with. They have been the brain behind vandalisation of public infrastructure.
“There are plans to completely ban them from roaming and loitering around neighbourhoods. We also apprehend such people and charge them to court.
“When their activities become criminal, we hand them over to the police. We have good synergy with security agencies.
“Apart from that, enforcement activities are going on, ranging from degradation issues, noise, land, and air pollution in the environment which have all been prosecuted here. We also prosecute public healthrelated issues, indiscriminate dumping of refuse, and open defecation.”
He appealed to residents to report scavengers who indulge in criminal activities to the police.
“Abuja is for all of us. It is our duty to come together to ensure that nobody tampers with the infrastructure the government has put in place to make life easier,” he added.