Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has indefinitely suspended the distribution of bags of rice to Nigerians after a stampede that claimed some beneficiaries’ lives at Zone A Headquarters of the NCS located along Harvey Road, Yaba.
NCS commenced the distribution of confiscated bags of rice to vulnerable Nigerians at the subsidised amount of N10,000 per bag on Friday, February 23 as a move to alleviate the impact of the rising cost of living in the country.
Unfortunately, chaos erupted while the activity was ongoing, resulting in a stampede. Seven people died, including a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mrs Comfort Adebanjo, and several others sustained various degrees of injuries.
During the exercise, beneficiaries were required to queue up, present their National Identification Number (NIN) and the sum of N10,000 for 25kg bags of rice, and N20,000 for 50kg bags to get their packages, as instructed by Bashir Adeniyi, the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC).
“The target groups include artisans, teachers, nurses, religious bodies, and other Nigerians within our operational areas. The intention is to reach out directly to members through these organised structures to ensure the maximum impact of this exercise,” Adeniyi had said.
While the exercise was halted due to the unfortunate incident, beneficiaries waited at the NCS office in the hope that they could get rice.
However, NSC has not released any official statement on the incident that prompted the indefinite suspension of distributions.
