At least five youths are feared dead following a stampede at the Niger State Government House in Minna on Tuesday.
The incident occurred during a gathering organised by Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago ahead of a planned Independence Day protest.
Reports indicated that more than 5,000 youths had gathered at the Government House for the meeting when a rush for money allegedly being distributed by the governor triggered panic and a stampede.
Several people were reportedly injured during the incident, while ambulances transported some of the victims to the General Hospital in Minna for medical attention.
The incident also reportedly led to families visiting the hospital to search for relatives who had attended the gathering.
A source within the Government House, who spoke anonymously, expressed concern over the size of the crowd, questioning why adequate arrangements had not been made to control the large number of people who attended.
The source said the crowd eventually became difficult to manage and that concerns were raised over the level of security and crowd-control arrangements at the venue.
The source added that an attempt was made to alert the governor’s Chief Press Secretary after the situation became alarming, but the official could not be reached.
Meanwhile, a source at the General Hospital, Minna, also confirmed that two ambulances had brought injured youths to the facility.
However, the source could not provide details on the number of people receiving treatment, saying medical personnel were working to create bed spaces and attend to those injured.
The reported five deaths had not been independently confirmed as of press time.
Attempts to obtain an official reaction from the governor’s Chief Press Secretary were unsuccessful, as his telephone lines were reportedly unreachable.
The Niger State Government had also not issued an official statement confirming the stampede or the reported casualties as of press time.
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