The Nigerian Customs Service has temporarily suspended the sales of seized food items across all the commands in the country.
The suspension followed the report of a stampede that claimed some lives at NCS Old Zonal Headquarters in the Yaba area of Lagos State, last Friday.
This was made known in a statement signed by the agency’s spokesperson, Abdullahi Maiwada, on Monday.
Recall that Customs had, on February 20, 2024, said it would dispose of seized food items to reduce the hardship and cost of living in the country.
Maiwada said: “The disposal of the food items got off to a smooth start at about 0800hrs.
“We enjoyed the cooperation of the large crowd that obliged us, giving preferences to the elderly, people living with disabilities, pregnant women, and other vulnerable Nigerians who showed up for the exercise.
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“This was the case up until about 1700hrs, as attested to by the over 5,000 beneficiaries and members of the press.
“However, unforeseen challenges arose when we ran out of stock and announced the continuation of the exercise the following day, leading to a regrettable outcome.
“The crowd became desperate and charged through our barricades in search of rice bags inside emptied containers. In the stampede that ensued, some fatalities and injuries were regrettably recorded.”
