HYPEXP, the event organizing company behind Saturday’s Hype Fest Concert featuring Jamaican dancehall mogul Konshens alongside local acts as The Kansoul, Nviiri, Bensoul, Ethc and The Sailors of walambez hit, has issued a statement of apology over the poor handling of the event.
In their statement, the company claims that over 10,000 revelers turned up at the venue (Ngong Racecourse) in the night of September 7th including DP Ruto’s projct in Kibra, MacDonald Mariga, Kericho Senator Aaron Cheruiyot and Langa’ata MP Nickson Korir.
The statement was of course a response to heavy criticism from Kenyans online and many who attended the concert. The company admitted that the many security hiccups that overshadowed the event were as a result of large numbers that overwhelmed their small security team.
They further claimed that the stampede was occasioned by goons who forced their way into the venue. “Due to the massive number of attendees, the security faced challenges at the entrance including; slow verification which resulted to impatience and backlog. our sincere apologies from resulted from this”.
The statement continues to read that that resulted to stampede that saw everyone weather with/without a ticket rushing in, and a large number of rogue elements who would benefit from the commotion surprised them by stealing verification equipment.
All victims who identified on sight by their team were attended to in the first aid tent. Poor crowd management and rogue promoters have stained the country’s image to host big acts as Koshens. Some international acts have avoided Kenyans concerts for conmanship or poor security details.
The safest venue remains Kasarani stadium but hiring cost is too high given the budget constraints companies as HYPEXP face. It is also not easily accessible to fans from all backgrounds like Ngong Racecourse or Carnivore grounds.
