Military Attack: Akwa Ibom Debunks Death Reports At Uyo Stadium

Hamilton Nwosa
Writer

Ad

Global CEOs, Top Diplomats, Ministers, Governors, Industry leaders gather in New York to unlock the Gulf of Guinea’s over $800 billion Energy, Oil & Gas, Minerals, Maritime Opportunities

By Abiola Olawale Following the official opening of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA80), New York, USA, high-level delegations from over a dozen countries, including global CEOs, top diplomats, ministers, governors, industry leaders will gather in New York to unlock the Gulf of Guinea’s over $800 billion Energy, Oil & Gas,…

Charted: Populations of China, India, U.S., and Europe (1950–2100)

Key Takeaways India is projected to remain the world’s most populous country through 2100, stabilizing around 1.5 billion people. China’s population is expected to fall by more than half, from 1.4 billion to 0.6 billion. Europe’s population will decline steadily, while the U.S. population grows gradually to 420 million. As global demographics continue to shift,…

Elon Musk drops to second place as AI boom powers Oracle’s Larry Ellison to world’s richest status

By Obinna Uballa Elon Musk has lost his long-held crown as the world’s richest person to Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, following a record-breaking surge in Ellison’s net worth. According to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index, Ellison’s fortune jumped by an unprecedented $101 billion on Tuesday night to reach $393 billion, surpassing Musk’s $385 billion. The windfall came…

Ad

By ‘Dotun Akintomide

Akwa Ibom State government has debunked news reports making the rounds that five fans died on Saturday while trying to gain access into the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, Uyo to watch the World Cup qualifying encounter between Nigeria and Zambia.

This follows earlier reports claiming that fans, who thronged the stadium to watch the match on Saturday, were allegedly attacked and crushed by soldiers at the gates of the stadium.

The attack was reported to have suddenly led to a huge fall of a crowd of people, leading to stampede where some lives may have been taken and many left with severe injuries.

Eyewitnesses alleged that gates and floor of the stadium were littered with blood of victims of the attack, while those in coma and other injured created a pathetic sight around the edifice.

The occurrence attracted a large number of men of the Nigeria Police force and Federal Road Safety Corps personnel who rushed to rescue some of the victims as well as rush the unconscious fans to nearly hospitals.

Personal belongings, including pair of shoes of victims were seen scattered around the section of the stadium.

However, in a press statement made available to The New Diplomat Akwa Ibom State, through its Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Charles Udoh admitted that there was stampede while fans who arrived the match venue after kick-off time were struggling to gain access into the stadium, but said no life was lost in the incident.

The state claimed that the stampede injured 9 persons who are currently receiving medical treatment.

While specifically referring to a report by a medium, the statement read: “I wish to categorically state that the said report is false and tainted with malice.

“There was a rush by spectators; who arrived the venue after the match had started, trying to gain entrance into the stadium which led to a few of them sustaining minor injuries.

“There were 9 people injured during the incident and all of them were taken to the hospital for treatment while no life was lost. This much was confirmed by the Akwa Ibom State Police Public Relations Officer and the Commissioner for Health.”

The statement further said that “Godswill Akpabio International Stadium is probably the best maintained sporting facility in Nigeria today and has no history of poor crowd control as maliciously posited in the report.”

“It is on record that Akwa Ibom State is reputed as being; not only a peaceful state but a safe and secure state with credible leadership which is one of the reasons why the state has; in the last 18 months, been listed by the National Bureau of Statistics as the 2nd largest Foreign Direct Investment Destination in Nigeria.

“We are dismayed that such a report; which has a high potency of painting a negative picture of not only Akwa Ibom but Nigeria as country, was published without verifying the facts. It is instructive to note that the Nigeria vs Zambia match was a FIFA organized match and mischievous insinuations as contained in the said report could easily lead to Nigeria being sanctioned.”

 

Ad

Unlocking Opportunities in the Gulf of Guinea during UNGA80
X whatsapp