As part of efforts to prevent tragedies at public events, several states have started the implementation of strict precautionary measures, The PUNCH reports.

This comes after 67 people, 35 of them children, died in stampedes in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital; Okija, Anambra State and Abuja during a funfair and food distribution ceremonies.

In the rush to secure free food items from the organisers, some of the participants were trampled upon, resulting in fatalities. While 35 children were confirmed dead by the police in Ibadan, 10 people died in Abuja, while 22 were reported killed in Okija.

In a decisive action, the Lagos State Government mandated individuals and groups to register with state safety agencies when planning for events expected to host more than 250 attendees, both during and after the Yuletide.

The government emphasised that failure to comply with this directive would result in sanctions for event organisers.

At a media briefing on Sunday, the State Commissioner for Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Relations, Gbenga Oyerinde, and his counterpart in the Ministry of Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotosho, alongside heads of state safety commissions, stressed the importance of adequate crowd control measures in preventing tragedies.

?The Lagos State Government is seriously concerned about the stampede incidents in Oyo, Anambra, and Abuja. Any individual, group, or organisation planning to distribute items or host large gatherings must obtain clearance from the state government and register with the safety commissions,? Omotosho stated.

He added that event organisers could also request ambulances from the state government at a reasonable fee.

Oyerinde encouraged residents to utilise the state?s toll-free emergency lines, 767 and 112, for prompt assistance during emergencies.

The Director-General of the Lagos Safety Commission, Lanre Mojola, announced that the registration process for large gatherings had been streamlined online.

Also, Ondo State?s Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Dr. Olukayode Ajulo, SAN, on Sunday introduced new crowd control guidelines for law enforcement, event organisers, and local authorities on Sunday.

Ajulo explained that the guidelines were established under the legal authority of the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), the Ondo State Administration of Criminal Justice Law 2015, and the Nigeria Police Act 2020.

The directives partly read, ?Law enforcement must assess risks for all public gatherings, considering factors like expected attendance, venue suitability, and potential security challenges.

?Also, organisers are required to inform local authorities of their events in advance, providing details such as the venue, expected crowd size, and timing.

?Adequate police and security personnel are to be assigned to events to monitor proceedings and prevent incidents. Others are event organisers and law enforcement must maintain open communication channels for real-time updates. Tools like CCTV cameras and drones may be used to monitor crowds.?

It added, ?Events with over 300 participants must have on-site medical teams, ambulances, and emergency response plans. Organisers must ensure attendees have access to drinking water and mobile toilets.

?Events must be held in venues with multiple access points to allow for easy movement.

?Organisers and participants must comply with Nigerian laws, and violations will attract legal consequences.?

Ajulo stated that all stakeholders must work together to ensure compliance with these directives.

?These measures are designed to prevent avoidable tragedies. Our aim is to create a safer and more organised environment for public events in Ondo State.?

Also, Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State called for more structured and safer approach to distributing relief materials to prevent stampedes and loss of lives.

Soludo, in a statement on Sunday signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Christian Aburime, expressed grief on the tragic loss of lives and sympathised with families of those who lost their loved ones.

?The event was with the noble intention of sharing relief materials to the less privileged during this festive season. However, the resulting tragedy underscores the urgent need for a more structured and safer approach to distributing such assistance to prevent stampede and loss of lives,? he said.

He urged individuals and groups engaged in charitable activities to prioritise the safety and wellbeing of beneficiaries.

?It is strongly advised that future distributions of relief materials be conducted in a more organised and decentralised manner, with adequate crowd control measures in place.

?This may include establishing multiple distribution points within the community to reduce overcrowding at a single location.

?Implement a system to prioritise vulnerable groups such as the elderly, pregnant women, children and people with disabilities; as well as employing trained personnel to manage crowds.

?Ensure orderly queues, provide assistance to those in need; and conduct public awareness to educate the public on safety protocols during such events,? he said.

Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has also taken measures to forestall similar incident in the state.

In a statement Sunday issued by the Special Adviser to the Governor, Media and Publicity, Ferdinand Ekeoma, on ?Public Safety Alert?, Otti stated, ?Organisers of any event that would require a large crowd of people, should get across to the Abia State Homeland Security or Local Government Authority for the necessary guide and support to ensure safety of attendees.?

The statement added, ?The Governor of Abia State, Dr. Alex Otti, wishes to commiserate with the families and loved ones of victims of stampede that happened in Oyo, Abuja and Anambra.

?Following this frightening upsurge in cases of stampede being witnessed in different parts of the country, especially this festive period, as a result of challenges with crowd-control by organisers and participants in different events/programmes, the Governor wishes to call on organisers of all kinds of programmes that would require a reasonable crowd, to make sure they put in place all safety measures to avoid a stampede of any type that may lead to loss of lives.

?The government also wishes to strongly warn against any unethical practices like spraying or throwing of money, or gift items into a crowd of people, given its propensity to lead to a stampede.

?The government shall come down very hard on any person or group that ignores this safety directive.?

Also, the Akwa Ibom State Government said it had taken measures to avoid stampede in the state by decentralising palliatives sharing that attracts large crowd in the state.

The state commissioner of Information and Strategy, Ini Ememobong, who spoke to one of our correspondents in Uyo, said during palliatives sharing the state ensures LG chairmen coordinate the distribution to avoid large crowds in any particular area.

He said, ?We have been sharing palliatives this season but we distribute them to the local governments. The LG chairmen distribute to villages. We are sending 20 bags of rice to every village. That way we are dissipating the crowd, so people are not gathering in large numbers. If they are gathering, they are gathering in their villages and it?s just a sizeable number of people who can gather in the village

?So, this is our own logistics plan which has been operationalised for a long time now and it?s working for us.?

Kogi State Government also applied measures similar to that of Akwa Ibom State.

The state information Commissioner, Kingsley Fanwo, said, ?The state government commenced the distribution of foodstuffs since last week to enable the citizens to enjoy their Christmas and New Year holidays.

?Catering for the welfare of the citizens is what we have been doing almost on a quarterly basis, so we have developed a template to ensure we do not harm the people we are seeking to help.

?We take the foodstuffs to each Local Government Area and from there, they take it to each ward and finally to each polling unit. By so doing, we deal with a very organised and manageable number of people.

?This is the reason we have never experienced such stampede when distributing food items in the state.?

The Rivers State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Joseph Johnson, said they had placed measures down to ensure such tragedy don?t happen in the state.

He stated, ?I?m sure that the states that these incidents happened, including the FCT, didn?t envisage that things would turn out that way, especially at this period of the year that people are celebrating.

?But for us as a government what we will do is to leverage on what has happened and forestall it should we have that situation. I believe strongly that we will have a better approach to it because our state is wonderful.?

The Delta State Government said it ?received with deep shock and sorrow, the news of the recent stampedes in some parts of the country.?

The state Commissioner of Information, Ifeanyi Osuoza, stated, ?We are therefore calling on all those who wish to organise such charity events during this festive period to ensure and put in place, stricter measures in crowd management and control during large gatherings, as this is very important for safeguarding lives and prioritising the welfare and wellbeing, especially those of children who most of these events are meant for, at public events.?

In an exclusive interview with The PUNCH, a nursing mother, who identified herself as Amarachi, said her child sustained injuries during the Abuja incident.

She recounted her journey from Mpape, a community about 9 to 11 kilometres away, to the church in hopes of receiving rice for Christmas.

?This is not my first time attending such a programme. The church provides us with rice every year. So this year, I came with my neighbour. I never anticipated such a crowd. I only came to collect the rice for Christmas. I thank God that I didn?t lose my life or that of my child,? she said.

A source at Maitama Hospital, who requested to remain anonymous due to lack of authorization to speak to the press, informed our correspondent on Sunday that most of the patients brought in from the incident were discharged the previous day.

The source confirmed that two children with serious injuries are still receiving medical care but are expected to be discharged soon.

However, one of our correspondents was denied access to the ward where the children were being treated.

Consequently, Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, expressed concern over the recorded deaths and advised event organizers to involve the police in future events.

Reacting, the PDP National Publicity Secretary described it as heartbreaking that, despite Nigeria?s abundant resources, citizens have allegedly been subjected to an agonizing life where they die struggling for food.

He stated ?Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) describes the widespread food stampede in the country as an ugly testament of the alarming level of misery, poverty, hunger, starvation, sense of hopelessness and desperation for survival currently plaguing our nation under the overtly insensitive, corrupt and rudderless Tinubu-led All Progressives Congress (APC) government.

?The Party laments the tragic stampede at private events in Oyo and Anambra States as well as the FCT, Abuja which claimed the lives of about 60 vulnerable citizens including children in their desperate struggle for food as a result of the pervasive hunger in the land occasioned by the anti-people policies of the APC administration.

?The PDP is devastated that the APC-led administration has wrecked our once thriving economy and pushed millions of Nigerians deeper into abject poverty and hunger with many citizens, not being able to afford their daily meals, now resorting to suicide and desperate measures including slavery mission abroad and fighting for crumbs for survival.

?It is heartbreaking that despite our abundant resources as a nation, Nigerians have been subjected to agonizing life where they die struggling for food.?

Ologunagba further stated that the situation in the country reinforces the view of the APC as a party of ?political vampires and buccaneers? who allegedly have no respect for human life and instead take pleasure in the suffering and death of citizens, including innocent children.

The PDP Publicity Secretary criticized the ruling APC for allegedly failing to make the necessary investments to strengthen the productive sector, especially in agriculture and food production.

The statement read in part ?This also explains why the APC administration has rejected all advice and suggestions by the PDP and other well-meaning Nigerians to review the hasty implementation of the suffocating policies of abrupt increase in the price of petroleum products and the floating of the Naira, despite the crippling consequences on the productive sector and life-discounting effect on the citizenry.

?More provoking is that instead of deploying the nation?s resources for the wellbeing of the people, the APC leaders are engaged in massive looting through direct pillaging of government vaults, budget padding, contract inflation, oil subsidy scam, palliative racketeering and phony programmes which have no benefit to the lives of the citizens.

?The PDP calls on Nigerians to hold the Tinubu-led APC administration responsible for the remote cause of these tragic occurrences for which it must recompense.

?Our Party insists that any administration that is sensitive and cares for the people would have since introduced intervention programmes to ease the suffering and improve on the welfare of the masses which is the primary purpose of government.?

In addition, PDP Deputy Youth leader called for President Tinubu?s resignation over the incidents.

Osadolor, in an exclusive interview with our correspondent, expressed that he expected President Tinubu to use the opportunity of these deaths to apologize to Nigerians for his failure to lead and manage the economy, and to resign with dignity.

He stated ?Well, I believe that the incidents are a referendum on the maladministration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. It vividly showcases all that we have been saying?that this government has lost its grip on economic policy and there is no full security under this administration.

?Nobody ever envisage that anyone will die of hunger and stampede for food like this in this country. Even Ukraine, which has been fighting a war for almost two or three years now, cannot have a food stampede because there is food security and the President is managing the economy very well.

?I would expect that President Tinubu would seize the occasion of the deaths of these people to apologise to Nigerians for his failure to lead and manage the economy, and resign honorably. It is a matter of honor and dignity for him.

?It is most unfortunate that our people are dying of hunger and our President has no response to any of this. I am fully aware. I am more than convinced that life has never been as bad for Nigerians in this country as it is now. This government has failed woefully, and Nigerians are dying in large numbers because they cannot cope.?

On his part, the CUPP National Secretary stated that President Tinubu?s APC-led administration has not made any intentional efforts to improve the lives of Nigerians.

In an exclusive interview with our correspondent, Ahmeh called for comprehensive and realistic plans to address Nigeria?s economic challenges.

He stated ?It is the failure of leadership that the leaders are not objective enough. Their priorities are not right, and they are not doing what is possible to take Nigeria from being a perpetual struggle to a country where there is a breakfast for the world?where we eat enough and export to the world, because we have about 39.6 million arable hectares of land.

?The government is supposed to provide an enabling environment for farmers to survive, and for farmers to involve investment to drive in the agricultural sector. We have the capacity to do so, but then we start to see this kind of thing because there is no intentionality by the APC President Tinubu led administration to rescue Nigeria from this issue of hunger and malnutrition that is occurring across Nigeria, both in the north and the west and beyond.

?We need a very realistic plan that can actually remove us from this disgraceful episode that is affecting Nigerians. About 67 Nigerians have died, lost their lives because of hunger.

?Because this government has failed to set right priorities and a lack of having the interest of the masses at heart. The current leadership has become so selfish, so self-centered, and irresponsible. They?re not responsible to the yearnings and aspirations of our people, or to the plight and poverty of our people. They?re not interested. The leadership continues to live in luxury while our people suffer. This is a call to action.?

Morseso, the LP national youth leader wondered why people of a country could be allowed to die in a disastrous manner as a result of the hardship brought about by the reforms of the President.

He stated ?My heart goes out to the parents of the victims. When you look at those who have died, the majority of them are handicapped people, poor, old people and children. Those families, no matter how much Tinubu mourns, can never recover from this loss. It is impossible.

?How can people lose their lives just because of some cup of rice with fee days to Christmas? This has further shown that we have a government that is not compassionate. It shows the government is not really working for the people. It?s quite unfortunate and pathetic.

?This government has failed the people. We have not had it this bad before. This is not something we should be projecting this to the international community. It doesn?t look good for Nigeria. May God make a way for those who lost their parents and children in that tragedy.?

The Peoples Redemption Party also lamented that the incidents starkly highlight the alarming conditions that many Nigerians are compelled to face.

In a statement released in Abuja, the Acting National Publicity Secretary urged Nigerians to redeem their bad choice by ensuring that the APC and PDP are not allowed to return to office in 2027.

Ishaq further said the Federal Government and the President in particular should be held accountable for the escalating hardships following the removal of the fuel subsidy and implementation of other policies that have impacted the most vulnerable in society.

He said, ?Such anti-people policies have plunged countless families into abject poverty, forcing them to make desperate choices just to survive. We equally strongly call on the Nigerian electorates to at every next opportunity vote out the APC and its twin sister, the PDP that have brought poverty and misery to our lives.

?The scenes of chaos and panic at these gatherings underline the extreme poverty and desperation that exist in our society?conditions that have been exacerbated by years of persistent and systemic misgovernance.

?While we mourn the lives lost and share in the grief of affected communities, we must also recognize that these tragedies are indicative of a societal crisis. The happenings expose a failure to prioritize the welfare and safety of citizens amidst increasingly dire socio-economic conditions.?

However, the National Publicity Director of the APC disagrees, stressing that it would be unjust to hold the President responsible for the ?unfortunate? incidents.

According to him, incidents like stampedes happen all over the world, especially when adequate security measures are not put in place.

He said, ?It?s unfortunate the initiatives resulted in stampede. But if you look at the issue of generosity all over the world, even in missions, churches, mosques and religious institutions where hands of fellowship or generosity are extended to the public, it always results in stampede if there is no adequate security measure.

?By nature, human beings are insatiable. The more they get, the more they want. So this is not the failure of the government, but actually the failure of adequate arrangement to contain the situation. The organisers did not anticipate such a thing. That probably explains why they did not provide adequate security.

?If you are to arrange a distribution of food, money or palliative, even in the villa where you have the seat of government, there will be stampede if there is no adequate arrangement. People will always want to take more. In advanced society, even in the US and Britain, you have such situations.

?So it is not just an issue of people starving or a situation of terrible hardship. If there is no proper structure in place to organise and make arrangement for distribution of amenities, they will always want to rush thinking that it will not go round. It is unfortunate that it happened, but I think we just have to look at the issue of security henceforth.?

Meanwhile, on Sunday, the Federal Government and the Christian Association of Nigeria offered their condolences to the families of the deceased.

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, described the incidents as deeply saddening and expressed solidarity with the victims? families and others affected.

?Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, and all those affected by these unfortunate incidents,? Idris said in a statement issued by his media aide, Rabiu Ibrahim.

He emphasised the need for organizers of such activities to prioritise safety measures to prevent similar occurrences.

The minister advised all individuals and organizations planning charitable events during the festive season to collaborate with the police and the National Emergency Management Agency for effective crowd control and security.

Idris also cautioned against politicising the incidents, stating that the stampedes are unrelated to the economic reforms introduced by President Bola Tinubu?s administration.

He highlighted that similar tragedies have occurred in the past and called for a focus on unity and shared responsibility rather than assigning unwarranted blame.

?It is worth noting that similar unfortunate occurrences have been recorded in the past, before the current administration, as such, making any attempt to link these tragedies to the President?s reforms is unfounded and disingenuous,? he said.

The minister reiterated that the administration?s reforms aim to promote sustainable economic growth and improve the lives of all Nigerians, particularly the most vulnerable, without causing additional distress.

In a statement on Sunday titled ?A Heartfelt Response to the Tragedy at Holy Trinity Catholic Church?, CAN President, Archbishop Daniel Okoh, described the death of the individuals as ?not just statistics? but a representation of real families who were hurting.

Okoh further said that the incident was part of a troubling pattern, noting two other instances of stampedes recorded in Oyo and Anambra States during the week, adding that the incidents highlighted ?the challenges of managing large crowds during charitable events?.

He called for togetherness and support for the grieving families, while stating that the concern shown since the sad incident highlights our shared humanity

Part of the statement read, ?The National Leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) is disturbed by the tragic events at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Maitama on Saturday morning. We have learned that at least ten people, including children, lost their lives in a stampede while trying to seek help from the church.?

?This tragedy is not just statistics; it represents real families who are hurting. Each person lost was someone?s beloved family member. We wish to express our heartfelt condolences to the Catholic Church and to the families affected by this terrible incident. We stand together with you in this time of sadness and prayer.?

?This incident is part of a troubling pattern, as Nigeria has experienced two other tragic stampedes this month. On December 18, during a Christmas funfair at a school in Ibadan, a stampede resulted in the deaths of 35 children, with six others critically injured. The event aimed to distribute cash and food to over 5,000 children. This tragic event is currently under investigation, focusing on better crowd control measures.?

?Just a few days later, another stampede occurred during a rice distribution event at a centre in Anambra State. Reports indicate that at least 22 people lost their lives, and 32 others were injured. These heartbreaking incidents highlight the challenges of managing large crowds during charitable events. In the face of these tragedies, we recognise the importance of coming together to support those who are grieving. It is crucial that we listen to one another, share our feelings, and offer help in any way we can. This is a time for compassion and understanding as we help one another heal.? (The PUNCH)

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