Fadojoe, a former Labour Party presidential aspirant, has condemned the arraignment of Queen Naomi Silekunola, the ex-wife of the Ooni of Ife, and seven others in connection with the December 18, 2024, funfair tragedy in Ibadan that resulted in a stampede.
“Ridiculous Arraignment”
Describing the arraignment as “very ridiculous,” Fadojoe expressed sympathy to the families of the victims and those injured. He emphasized that “referring to them as criminals is completely misnomer and discouraging those of us that have been sending food to Nigeria from doing it this December and may be in future”.
Stampede Caused by Hunger and Economic Crisis
Fadojoe pointed out that the stampede was not directly caused by the negligence of the organizers, but rather by the desperate situation of millions of Nigerians who are struggling to survive due to the country’s economic crisis. “Millions of Nigerians are hungry because the situation of the country is so terrible! In fact, the only people that have money in abundance in Nigeria now are the politicians”.
Government’s Handling of the Issue
Fadojoe criticized the government’s handling of the issue, stating that it will discourage people from helping others. “With the way the government is handling this issue, the masses will be the people to suffer it… If something happens, let’s look at it in people’s way and not just in criminal way”.
Call to Reconsider
Fadojoe called on the federal government, led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to reconsider their actions on the Ibadan stampede tragedy and not continue to handle it in a way that makes Nigerians feel as if those helping others are being victimized.