Families of the 22 Kano athletes who tragically lost their lives in a road accident in May have received financial and material support from Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, and the Kano State Government, with total donations exceeding ₦321 million.
According to a statement issued by the spokesperson to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, Sanusi Bature Dawakin Tofa, the First Lady donated ₦110 million under the Victim Support Fund, with each of the 22 bereaved families receiving ₦5 million. The intervention, described as a show of “compassion, leadership, and shared humanity,” was praised by the governor as a powerful gesture of national solidarity.
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In addition, the Kano State Government provided ₦130 million in supplementary support. Each of the ten injured athletes received ₦2 million and a plot of land, while the families of the deceased were granted another ₦5 million each.
Governor Yusuf also recalled the earlier state donation of ₦22 million, disbursed shortly after the incident. At the time, ₦1 million was given to each bereaved family, and ₦500,000 to each injured survivor.
Other contributors included the Ogun State Government, which gave ₦32 million, the Jigawa State Government with ₦20 million, and ₦2.2 million from a philanthropist, Sagir Koki. In total, the financial aid reached ₦321.2 million. The state also distributed 30 bags of rice and allocated housing plots to further support the victims’ families.
In a symbolic gesture of remembrance, Governor Yusuf announced that the Kano Sports Institute in Karfi has been renamed the “Kano 22 Athletes Institute” in honor of the deceased.
To ensure proper distribution of the funds, the government is working with Sharia courts to oversee the equitable Islamic sharing of the first tranche of funds, totaling ₦6,709,375 per family.
Speaking on behalf of the bereaved families, Chairman of the victims’ relatives, Baffa Indabawa, expressed profound appreciation to the First Lady and Governor Yusuf, calling their response “deeply consoling and dignified.”
The athletes were returning from the 22nd National Sports Festival, held in Ogun State from May 18 to 30, where Kano finished 13th on the medals table with 29 medals, including six gold.
