The Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja on Sunday, held a remembrance mass for the ten persons who lost their lives during the 21st December 2024 palliatives sharing at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Maitama.
Recall that during last year’s yuletide period, Nigeria Experienced three major stampedes as a result of palliative sharing; one happened at Ibadan, Oyo state which claimed 35 lives of children, another one happened in Okija, Anambra State, which claimed the lives of 22 persons and the Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Abuja which claimed the lives of 10 persons.
While delivering his Homily during the Mass, the Archbishop of Abuja, Most Reverend Ignatius Kaigama said the Mass was to invoke the comfort, the consolation of the Lord upon the Church, upon the parish, and upon the victims of the December 21st accident.
“In the course of your magnanimous gesture to provide food and other basic needs to the poor and the hungry, as you have always done, successfully too, for decades, in line with the Catholic tradition of performing the corporal works of mercy, your inspiration to serve the poor and the vulnerable comes from St. Vincent de Paul, who initiated in 1833 your society which cares for the poor and the needy admirably.
“No wonder every Sunday at church entrances in many parishes your members stand with their iron boxes, clinging to them to call attention, saying, Help the poor! Help the poor! This is in line with the church’s concern for the poor, which led Pope Francis to declare the World Day of the Poor. There is a special day dedicated to the poor by the Pope in the name of the church.
“However, the distribution at Holy Trinity Metamer in 2024 witnessed an unprecedented turnout of about 5,000 needy and vulnerable persons. Certainly, due to the heightened economic hardship affecting many families in the country. It was never because we were negligent that they came.
“It was because they were hungry that they came. And their hunger is not the fault of the Catholic Church. If you are looking for a culprit, please cast your eyes elsewhere.
“Certainly not the Catholic Church. The large crowd outside the church premises created pressure and panic. This led to a struggle as individuals scrambled to gain entry through the church gate, which resulted in fatalities and injuries.
“No one, I repeat, no one should be allowed to die a needless death just struggling for what to eat. Is it not shameful that we shall say in the future and in history that people died here simply struggling for what to eat? Is it not a shame to the nation? And when the international community hears about it, they also wonder what is happening to Nigeria with our huge and vast human and natural resources. When the sad incident occurred, immediate actions were taken by the church”, he said.
The Bishop noted that the Catholic Church is the world’s largest non-government provider of healthcare services with its over 100,000 charity and healthcare centers, which include hospitals and dispensaries, care homes for people with leprosy, homes for the elderly or the chronically ill, people with disability and so on.
“I want us to know that the Catholic Church cares and the Catholic Church cares for the poor. To underscore the importance of this prayer event, I had to cancel the Mass today, which I had scheduled to hold with the internally displaced persons at their camp in St. Kevin’s Pastoral Area, Caboosa, in order to be here with you to pray”, he noted.
While explaining that the tragedy provides an avenue to learn some lessons, he said the unexpected incident underscores the need for enhanced crowd control measures. “We are learning that they need to attempt to pre-register people in order to prevent a similar occurrence”, he added.
Bishop Kaigama further underscored the need for sensitization on orderly conduct before and during distributions so that organisers can minimize anxiety and panic.
“We are certainly learning, but remember, we have done this for many, many years without any incident of this nature. But that it has happened means that it can happen again, so we must take adequate proactive measures to ensure that this does not happen again.
“While we mourn the loss of lives, we remain steadfast in our commitment to serve the poor and the vulnerable. And there are many, there are millions in this country, and we are committed to serving them as best as we can within our capabilities. And we will work to ensure that such incidents are avoided in the future”, he noted.
He however thanked members of St. Vincent de Paul, who over the years have championed the cause of the poor. “And I do not hesitate in declaring the parish priest of Holy Trinity, Maitama Fr. Moses Jimbilee, the President of St. Vincent de Paul of Maitama Parish, Ms. Julia Omwen Melia, and all the members of St. Vincent de Paul in Abuja as our Heroes and Heroines of 2024”, he added.
He charged the government to do all that is possible so that no one dies of hunger or other artificial causes.
He also called on the government to learn to use available resources without corruption to save the lives of citizens.
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