Decades ago, the instruments of mass deaths in Nigeria were vehicle accidents, robberies and communal clashes; in the last decade, those instruments are now ubiquitous, especially since the last decade when terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, herdsmen militia, cultism, organ trafficking and ritual killings have been on the rise.
Ironically, more and more Nigerians are now going to their early graves when they least expect to where they go to get relief from their hardship; where they go to receive assistance from the abundance and benevolence of others.
In one incident, a volunteer operative with the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Fatima Bala, is one of the 10 persons said to have died in a stampede at the Gawon Nama residence of Senator Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko during the distribution of sallah palliatives to the underprivileged in Sokoto State.
According to the report, about 30 other persons sustained varying degrees of injuries in the incident that occurred on the evening of Thursday April 4, this year
While the police have not been known to take any action in such a deadly incident, or even issue a statement, the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) in Sokoto State has not only called for an investigation, but has alleged, in its statement, that this was not the first time such distribution of food of charity has led to deaths at the house of the former governor of Sokoto State, now senator.
“The PDP, however, wishes to call on security agencies to launch a thorough investigation into the matter, with a view to forestalling the ugly incident in the future.
“This is not the first time it is happening at the same place, due to poor arrangements, without regard to the safety of human lives,” part of the statement issued by the publicity secretary of the PDP in Sokoto State, Hassan Sahabi Sanyinnawal, read.
The Senator Wamakko House stampede incident is yet another incident that is now a recurring decimal against which this newspaper did an editorial last month.
An excerpt from it reads: “On February 24 when Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) discounted the price of foreign parboiled rice to Nigerians at its zonal headquarters, Harvey Road, Yaba, Lagos, seven people died while struggling to buy the staple. Trouble started when Lagosians decided to force their way into Customs’ facility. According to reports, those who fell in the process were trampled and many others fainted.
In another such tragedy, at least seven persons died in a stampede at the annual Zakat distribution organised by AYM Shafa Foundation in Bauchi on Friday on March 24.
Most of the victims who died were women and children who trooped out en masse to the Shafa Holdings head office located along Bauchi-Jos Road to collect N10,000 as Zakat from the foundation.
In Nasarawa State, two undergraduates died during food distribution by the state government. The state had included educational institutions in the distribution of food assistance in its quest to ease the hardship the people are going through following the removal of fuel subsidy by the federal government.
On March 20, however, the exercise turned bloody after the crowd became unruly at the Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK), and claimed the lives of two students of the institution.
Such stampede deaths during distribution of charity is not new. Last year in Port Harcourt, River State, more than 30 persons were reported dead and others injured in a church when a local charity organisation was sharing food after the crowd pushed through the barricade in defiance of the organisers.
It was also reported that Shafa Foundation had done a similar charity exercise in the previous years during Ramadan, also with some casualties.”
As a newspaper, we feel it is unfortunate that such a tragic incident of this magnitude would happen in such a prominent place and it was unreported and uninvestigated until a political party raised the alarm. Where were the police and NSCDC whose operatives must have been close to the scene of the stampede? And what of CSOs and human rights groups?
We reiterate our call on those who wish to extend such charity measures to engage traditional institutions and professional bodies with proven track records in similar activities in order to forestall avoidable deaths. We also join the call by the PDP that the police launch an investigation into this incident to ascertain the roles played by individuals in this criminal negligence that led to the untimely death and maiming of these poor Nigerians, especially as, according to the report, this was not the first time such palliatives distribution deaths were recorded at the senator’s place and at the Shafa Foundation.
In a country like Nigeria where consistent poor governance has pushed most of the citizenry under the poverty line, it is to be expected that any uncoordinated distribution of food and other material assistance will most likely result in a struggle and stampede that would lead to deaths and injuries.
With that in mind, those who have things to give out should not present them in such a way that their philanthropy becomes a death bait to poor folks.
Similarly, those, especially politicians who are in the habit of throwing cash to crowds usually during political campaigns not only abuse and debase the naira, but also dehumanise them and ensnare them to possible trampling to death.
As a newspaper, we call on the police to come out with a strong statement cautioning charity givers that they would face prosecution for homicide, manslaughter or whatever the laws prescribe if they directly or indirectly prepare the grounds for such avoidable deaths. They must stop conducting their activities in a way that endangers the lives of those they want to help. Otherwise, they should keep their handouts.
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