Nigeria Crackdown or Cruelty? Lagos Govt Faces Backlash Over Homeless Arrests

Lagos officials arrested 62 homeless people in a midnight raid, sparking backlash over the state’s approach to poverty and public order.

• 62 people (59 men, 3 women) were arrested for sleeping on Lagos streets
• The operation happened at 1:30 a.m. in areas like VI, Falomo, and Osborne
• State claims it’s part of efforts to remove “undesirable elements”
• Critics call the arrests dehumanising and a misuse of state power
• Suspects will be charged in court, according to the Commissioner

It’s one thing to want clean streets, but another to criminalise homelessness. The Lagos government says the move is about safety and urban order. But many Nigerians see it as yet another example of targeting the vulnerable instead of tackling the root causes of poverty. Online, some called it shameful, others demanded help, not handcuffs, for those with nowhere to go.

This raid raises a simple but urgent question: What kind of society arrests people for sleeping outside when they have no place else to go?

Midnight arrests may restore ‘sanity’ to the streets, but at what human cost? Shouldn’t clean-up include compassion?

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