By Baba Yusuf
A group, Suleja Concern Initiative against Illegal Beer Parlours, has called on the Chairman of Suleja local government and the Governor of Niger state to “immediately check the menace of illegal beer parlours in the Rafin-Sayin area of Suleja.
The call was contained in a statement issued by Ramatu Abdullahi who said the “existence of these slums is a nuisance to the entire Suleja community; it is an abuse of the privacy of many residents in addition to brewing increased youths’ drunkenness and criminality.”
He said: “We want to call on the Niger state Governor to order for the demolition of these places and arrest the owners of such illegal beer parlours. It is a well-known fact that law against indiscriminate sale of beer and alcohol exists in Niger state since the previous administration of late Abdulkadir Kure through setting up of the Niger state liquor board that issues licenses for the sale of alcohol in only designated areas, but with the number of illegal beer parlors and joints in the Rafin-Sanyin area of Suleja, the state Sharia commission as well as liquor board needs to intensify more effort in order to bring the operators of this illegal alcohol joints to order and book.”
According to the statement, “so far, more than half of Rafin-Sayin has been taken over by these illegal beer parlour operators, and aside from the alcohol sale, hard drugs and other criminal activities are also taking place in such area.”
The statement further called on the Inspector-General of Police, chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the Department of State Services (DSS) to set up a joint task force to curb “this menace in the interest of the good people of Suleja.”
It added that “youths who are supposed to be in school or pursuing their future ambition most often resort to going to this beer parlors in broad day light to consume alcohol.”
“There are of course designated legal resorts and joints licensed by the liquor board in Suleja, but due to criminality, most people prefer to patronise these hideouts for reasons best known to them. The nearness of Suleja to the Federal Capital Territory should make the authorities concern to act fast in the interest of the entire Suleja local government. This menace has also increased the rate of involvement of girls into prostitution as these illegal beer parlours serve as meeting points between the girls and their customers. The chairman of Suleja local government should invite heads of security agencies in Suleja to pay an unscheduled visit to Rafin-Sayin to see for themselves how a mini beer parlour city has been put in place before formally inviting the governor to also visit the place.”
