At least five youths were feared dead on Tuesday following a stampede at the Niger State Government House, Minna, during a gathering convened by Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago over a planned Independence Day protest.
Vanguard gathered that more than 5,000 youths had reportedly thronged the Government House for the meeting when a rush for money allegedly being shared by the governor triggered the stampede.
Several youths were said to have been injured in the ensuing chaos, with ambulances conveying some of the victims to the General Hospital, Minna.
The incident also reportedly prompted several families to visit the hospital in search of relatives who had attended the gathering.
A source at the Government House, who spoke on condition of anonymity, expressed concern over the large crowd allowed into the premises, saying the situation ought to have been anticipated by security personnel.
According to the source, the crowd became overwhelming and raised concerns about the absence of adequate arrangements for crowd control.
He said he attempted to alert the governor’s Chief Press Secretary after becoming apprehensive about the situation but could not reach him.
The source said: “How will a governor allow this large number of people into the Government House and not prepare for crowd control?
“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.”
Meanwhile, a source at the General Hospital, Minna, who pleaded anonymity, confirmed that two ambulances had made trips to the hospital with injured youths.
The source, however, could not confirm the number of victims brought to the hospital, saying doctors and nurses were making efforts to provide bed spaces and attend to the injured.
Vanguard could not independently confirm the reported five deaths as of press time.
Attempts to reach the governor’s Chief Press Secretary for an official reaction were unsuccessful, as his telephone lines were not reachable.
The state government had also not issued an official statement on the reported stampede and casualties as of press time.
