The Federal Government has mandated that all charitable organisations must coordinate with police and emergency services before conducting food distribution events, following a series of fatal stampedes that claimed multiple lives across Nigeria.
In a statement issued through his Special Assistant (Media) Rabiu Ibrahim, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, announced on Sunday that event organisers must now work directly with police formations and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to ensure proper crowd control, implementing a directive from Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun.
The mandate comes in response to recent tragic stampedes at food distribution centres in Ibadan, Abuja, and Okija that resulted in multiple fatalities.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, and all those affected by these unfortunate incidents,” Idris said, describing the events as “deeply saddening.”
Read Also: Food stampedes mirror Nigeria’s poverty, misery, hunger- PDP
The new directive requires all organisations planning charitable distributions to obtain clearance from local police formations and NEMA before proceeding with any events. This collaboration, according to the Minister, is “crucial to safeguarding lives” and preventing humanitarian efforts from causing unintended harm.
Addressing the political dimension of the tragedies, Idris pushed back against attempts to connect the incidents to the current administration’s economic policies. “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 stated.
The Minister defended the government’s economic reform agenda, maintaining that it aims to achieve sustainable growth whilst protecting vulnerable populations from undue hardship.
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