A tragic incident occurred at the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) office in Yaba, Lagos on Friday when a 28-year-old woman, identified as Debby Tutu, lost her life while attempting to get bags of rice.
The customs office had announced the distribution of confiscated rice bags at a discounted price of N10,000 in a bid to ease the burden of increasing food prices in the country.
Tutu, a mother of a three-year-old child, had called her sister, Blessing, to join her at the distribution center. However, when Blessing arrived, she was unable to locate her sister. Blessing explained that upon arrival, there were numerous people at the office also trying to obtain rice. In the chaotic scene, tear gas was used by customs officers and soldiers, causing distress among the crowd. Despite waiting until 7 pm, Blessing was unable to find her sister.
Desperate to find Tutu, Blessing and others went to various hospitals, including Harvey Road Health Centre and the WAEC hospital, but were informed that no such individuals fitting Tutu’s description were brought in. It was only on Saturday morning that they discovered Tutu had died due to the stampede during the distribution. Tutu leaves behind her husband, child, parents, and siblings.
Blessing expressed her frustration with the lack of concern shown by customs officers, claiming they did not visit the family or show any sympathy. The customs office suspended the rice distribution indefinitely following the incident, although no official reason has been provided for the suspension. There have been reports of multiple deaths and injuries during the stampede, but the NCS has yet to address these claims.
