Children feared dead during stampede at Naomi Silekunola’s funfair in Ibadan

Naomi Silekunola OgunwusiOoni of Ife ex-wife

Three children have reportedly died and others injured after a stampede at a Christmas funfair by Queen Naomi Silekunola, former wife of the Ooni of Ife Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi in Ibadan, Oyo State on Wednesday.

The programme organised by her foundation Women in Need of Guidance and Support (WINGS) came to an abrupt end over the sad incident.

There were conflicting reports about the number of casualties but the BBC reported that a policeman confirmed that at least three children were dead.

The affected children were rushed to the University of Ibadan College Hospital (UCH) where some of them were confirmed dead.

Previous editions of the annual Christmas funfair organised by WINGS were successfully held in Ogun and Ondo states.

A resident of Ibadan who spoke to QEDNG said news of the 2024 funfair spread after Naomi Silekunola’s appearance on a radio programme hosted by Ibadan-based Hamzat Oriyomi on Tuesday.

Many people from Ibadan and nearby towns started converging on Islamic High School, Bashorun venue of the event after the radio show and many of them slept there overnight.

Early reports indicated that people started trampling over themselves shortly after the programme started.