Stampede:Arrest Abuja, Anambra Event Organisers or Release Ibadan Organisers – MURIC

• The Muslim Rights Concern urged the Nigeria Police to either arrest the organizers of palliative distributions or release those detained in Ibadan
• MURIC criticized the unequal treatment of organizers involved in deadly stampedes, highlighting the lack of arrests in Abuja and Anambra

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has called on the Nigeria Police Force to either arrest the organisers of palliative distributions in Abuja and Anambra or release those detained in connection with a similar incident in Ibadan.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Executive Director of MURIC, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, condemned what he described as unequal treatment of the organisers of three separate stampedes that resulted in multiple fatalities across the country.

He referenced the tragic events in Maitama, Abuja, where 10 lives were lost, and in Okija, Anambra State, where at least 20 people died, highlighting the lack of arrests or detentions in both cases.

In contrast, he noted that the Oyo State Police Command had detained Ms. Naomi Silekunola, the ex-wife of the Ooni of Ife, and seven others following a stampede at Bashorun Islamic High School, Ibadan, which led to multiple fatalities.

Further complicating matters, a Chief Magistrate Court in Ibadan on Tuesday ordered the remand of three individuals connected to the incident, including the school’s principal, Mr. Abdullahi Fasasi, the proprietor of Agidigbo FM, Alhaji Oriyomi Hamzat, and Ms. Silekunola.

Prof. Akintola expressed disappointment with what he described as selective justice.

“MURIC is interested in knowing why only the organisers of the Ibadan event were arrested while those in Abuja and Okija were allegedly left free,” Akintola said.

He argued that Queen Naomi Silekunola and the others detained in Ibadan acted with good intentions and should not be scapegoated.

“The arrest of the principal of Islamic High School, Orita Bashorun, Ibadan, was quite unnecessary because the venue was approved by the Oyo State Ministry of Education and not by the principal acting unilaterally,” he added.

The MURIC leader also questioned the absence of arrests in Anambra and Abuja, particularly in light of the involvement of high-profile organisations like the Obi Jackson Foundation in Okija and the Catholic Church in Maitama.

Akintola stated that all the organisers of the three events should be treated equally to uphold justice.

“A stampede is a stampede. One should not be differentiated from the other. All the organisers should have been treated equally,” he insisted.

He urged the Oyo State Police Command to release the detained individuals unconditionally and called for the state government to set up an independent panel to investigate the Ibadan tragedy.

“The honourable thing the Oyo State Police Command can do is to set those detained free immediately while the state government investigates the tragedy,” Akintola concluded.