The Oyo State government has expressed its disapproval for street begging regretting that some of the beggars in the state had been linked to one crime or the other.
The Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Alhaji Ishmael Alli, who represented Governor Abiola Ajimobi at the second General Assembly of Muslim Umaah of South West, Nigeria in Ibadan on Sunday said:
“We have heard now that Islam forbids begging, likewise government. We urge the media, law enforcement agencies and religious bodies to join government in discouraging it.
“The reason why government had embarked on many programmes such as the agricultural initiatives, is to get all its residents involved in decent endeavours and living”
Islamic scholar, Alhaji Femi Abbas, while delivering the event’s 2016 lecture titled “Zakaah and Poverty Alleviation”. He described Zakaah as a panacea for poverty eradication, blaming the increasing insecurity, corruption and other social vices in the land on poverty.
His words:
“Zakaah is a necessity. It allows the imprisoned to be out of jail and the sick to be on their feet
“If the rich can give to the poor, both the rich and the poor in every society will co-exist peacefully.
“If Muslims in Nigeria can generate N34 billion on Zakaah every year, there will be less poverty and less begging”
Zakaah, regarded as one of the five pillars of the Islamic faith, prescribes that 2.5 per cent of a Muslim’s net income should be given to the poor.
