They are regular faces along Onitsha- Enugu expressway. Easily noticeable, they have many things in common – varying degree of deformities mainly due to poliomyelitis attack. All of them are of Northern extraction while their permanent places of daily “business” are the various failed portions of the Onitsha- Enugu highway.
They surface as early as 6am daily while their benefactors are commuters who ply the road and throw naira notes of several denominations at them. They often wave in anticipation anytime a vehicle gets closer to the strategic positions they occupy while their finance controller strains to collect the money sometimes at the risk of being crushed by another vehicle.
A chat with Sunday Sun reporter who had observed them for quite some time, became quite revealing.
At the failed portion of the road, near Amawbia junction, Sunday Sun reporter encountered a special group. Eleven in number, interaction with the group revealed that 9 out of the group hail from Gombe state while the other three are from Borno State.
Posing as a concerned citizen sent by the government to provide better life for them, the most outspoken in the group who identified himself as Idris Adamu gave an insight into their lives and background.
“We are normal human beings though condition has placed us in this situation. I am from Gombe state and most of us have been in Anambra for more than one year now. We live inside Army barracks in Onitsha and we come here early enough to make money so as to help ourselves.
“Though I’m physically challenged as a result of polio, I have a wife just like many of us here and we send money to our families from the proceeds of this begging for alms.
“I enrolled to train under the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) in my state. Unfortunately, when the thing matured and they were to give us money to set up business, they bungled everything. I was also part of David Osunde Foundation (brings out his purse and presents both identity cards to the reporter) and they were to fix us into something meaningful but it has been promises upon promises. That is why we are here and we are hoping for a better tomorrow”, he said.
The beggars’ spokesman was later to drop a bombshell when he told Sunday Sun that he and his colleagues wished that the government would abandon the on-going rehabilitation of the ever-busy road.
While commuters who ply the highway lament the deplorable condition of the road and pray that government expedites action on the pace of work, the beggars are praying another set of prayers that the work stalls forever.
When the reporter asked Idris his position on the road’s condition and its implications on their business, he did not mince words in saying that what is good news to others is actually bad news for them.
“Allah, I must tell you, if government repairs this road fully, hunger may kill us. We don’t have any other business apart from this. We attach ourselves at the failed portions because drivers will always slow down when they approach such bad spots and it is from there that people now throw some money to us. Let Allah put confusion in the minds of contractors and the government so that they will abandon the project or else, hunger may deal with us.
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