We would have preferred not to refer to the nationality of the street beggars who have taken over traffic intersections in some parts of Accra.
For the sake of emphasis however it is necessary to point out that they are Nigeriens and their sheer numbers and the manner in which they beg for alms has attracted a number of headlines in the media in recent times.
We have in previous commentaries made reference to the fact that deporting them to their country of origin is not as easy as it looks. Our commitment to the protocols of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) places a restriction on extent to which an ECOWAS country we can react to such problems.
The best we can do is to prevent them from entering in the first place.
A story in this edition gives credence to the concern expressed by some motorists in Accra after getting harassed at the hands of the foreign beggars.
The story is about the arrest of nine street beggars, of course, non-Ghanaians for causing damage to vehicles.
Motorists have had cause to complain to the Airport Police Station about how the beggars use metal objects to create dents on their vehicles when they fail to give them money.
Even more worrying is the fact that some of them physically attack motorists who do not respond to their demands.
We might be constrained in taking action against the beggars however when they begin exhibiting such signs of criminalities, then they must be arrested and dealt with
When they are arrested engaging in criminalities they must be made to face the full rigours of our laws.
We congratulate the Airport Police for their swift response and ask that other police formations do same immediately when such crimes are committed by these street beggars
With no signs that the beggars will return to their country of origin anytime soon there is the possibility that they would remain here. Since some of them are now showing criminal tendencies, their actions would only add to the tally of crimes in the country the implication of which is not far-fetched.
Having originated from boko haram infested parts of Niger we are definitely harbouring elements whose character we can hardly vouch for.
These are not times for us to ignore finding out more about persons we receive into the country. The beggars we see in the streets have the proclivity to be aggressive as some of them have started attacking motorists. For illegal immigrants to start attacking us on our own soil, is something that should not be countenanced at all under any circumstances.