AT
LEAST TWO STUDENTS died and 23 were hurt in a crush in central Nigeria on
Friday as a huge crowd gathered for food handouts at a university.
Thousands of
students at Nasarawa State University, Keffi, surged and broke through gates
where the state government was distributing bags of rice.
Nigeria has been grappling with soaring food
prices since the government withdrew a petrol subsidy and floated the naira
currency in a bid to shore up the economy.
Inflation has
reached a three-decade high of 31.7 percent, making basic items inaccessible
for many Nigerians, most of whom live on less than $2 a day.
"There was a stampede this morning at the
rice distribution point within the university where the state governor was to
distribute 4,000 bags of rice to students," university spokesman Abraham
Habu told AFP by phone.
"Two female students died in the stampede
while 23 others were taken to hospital with injuries but in a stable
condition," Habu said.
Desperate people had gathered from around 2 am
(0100 GMT) waiting for the distribution to students and the disabled, which was
to begin around 10 am, Habu said.
By 9 am the crowd had "surpassed 4,000 and
become uncontrollable," he said.
People pushed their way into the fenced zone and
began taking away rice in a "chaotic manner," forcing soldiers
guarding the area to withdraw, Habu said.
The state government has set up a committee to
investigate, he said.
In the worst
economic crisis in a generation, many poor Nigerians have had to skip meals and
give up products such as meat, eggs and milk.