Maitama Catholic Church Stampede Not Act Of Negligence – Archbishop Kaigama
By Stella Enenche, Abuja
The Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Ignatius Kaigama has said that the December 21 2024 stampede at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church was occasioned by the unprecedented turn out of about 5000 needy and vulnerable individuals.
Kaigama made this known on Sunday in Abuja during a Holy mass in honour of the victims of Maitama food sharing exercise.
While attributing the mammoth crowd that thronged the Church for the annual Christmas items distribution to the harsh economic realities of the time, His Grace tasked government on the urgent need to partner with the Church in the area of welfare and other social services.
He, therefore, urged the public to disregard the claim of negligence, insisting that the large crowd outside the Church premises brought pressure to bear on the exercise.
The Archbishop said,”What occurred here during the annual Christmas items distribution was never as a result of negligence. Previous years of distribution took place seamlessly in all the many Catholic parishes in the FCT. However, the distribution at Holy Trinity Maitama in 2024, witnessed an unprecedented turnout of about 5,000 needy and vulnerable individuals, certainly, due to the heightened economic hardship affecting many families in the country.
“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 the fatalities and injuries. No one should be allowed to die a needless death just struggling for what to eat.
“While thanking God, we must realize that this unexpected incident underscores the need for enhanced crowd control measures; the need to attempt to pre-register people in order to prevent a similar occurrence; sensitization on orderly conduct before and during distributions can help to minimize panic,”he said.
He reassured Nigerians that the Catholic church will remain steadfast in serving the poor and vulnerable.
The cleric added that,”We hope that the government will collaborate with the Catholic Church to look after the poor, the starving, the socially deprived, and others. We should be speaking the language of collaboration rather than blame.
The Church has always been a place of refuge and support, and we need to work with the concerned government agencies to address the underlying issues that led to this sad event. It is on record that countries such as Germany, the US, UK, Ireland, and others empower the Catholic Church and other faith- based organizations to provide for the poor.
“Our government must do all that is possible so that no one dies of hunger or other artificial causes. Nigeria must learn to use available resources without corruption to save the lives of citizens even if it is one person,” he said.
