At least five youths are feared dead following a stampede at the Niger State Government House, Minna, on Tuesday, during a meeting convened by Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago over a planned Independence Day protest.
Vanguard learnt that over 5,000 youths had thronged the premises for the gathering when a rush for money allegedly being shared by the governor sparked the stampede.
Several of the youths were reportedly injured in the chaos, and ambulances took some of the victims to the General Hospital, Minna. Families were also said to have rushed to the hospital in search of relatives who attended the gathering.
A source at the Government House, who spoke on condition of anonymity, criticised the decision to allow such a large crowd into the premises, saying security personnel should have anticipated the danger. According to him, the crowd became overwhelming and there were no adequate crowd control arrangements.
He said he tried to alert the governor’s Chief Press Secretary but could not reach him.
“How will a governor allow this large number of people into the Government House and not prepare for crowd control?” the source said. “This is deeply unfortunate. Honestly, this country is finished. How did we get to the point where people attend a gathering and families have to start calling hospitals to find out if their loved ones are among the injured?
“Honestly, I think the security personnel at the entrance gates of the Government House, Minna, should be blamed for not being up to their duties.”
A source at the General Hospital, Minna, who also asked not to be named, confirmed that two ambulances had brought injured youths to the facility. He could not confirm how many victims had been received, saying doctors and nurses were working to provide bed spaces and treat the injured.
Vanguard could not independently verify the reported deaths as of press time.
Efforts to get an official reaction from the governor’s Chief Press Secretary were unsuccessful, as his phone lines were unreachable. The state government has also yet to issue a statement on the incident or the casualties.
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