The Ben’s debut album over the weekend, ended unceremoniously as the police intervened and stopped the show. Despite the fact that the entrance fee seemed to be expensive for many (Rfw3000 for ordinary seats and Rfw5000 for VIP), the venue, Petit Stade, is reported to have been very small to accommodate all his fans. Whilst curtain raisers were performing before the overcrowded spectators, the police intervened immediately and ordered the organisers to stop the concert, as people outside where suffocating, trying to enter into the hall. It was a total disaster as The Ben dragged himself to the stage and cried a river, begging the police to let him launch his album “Amahirwe ya mbere” but in vain. It is alleged that the chaos was caused due to poor organization. And according to an insider, the concert was poorly organised and chaotic. In an interview with the Police Spokesman said the event’s organisers didn’t inform the police about the concert, but only to communicate when the chaos was at its peak. “It was their fault, they never informed the police to help them control the crowd,” Uwamungu said, adding that, “Under normal circumstances, when an artist is organizing an event, is expected to contact the city council, then the city council informs the police to help ensure security. Uwamungu further said that the concert was chaotic and one person suffered serious injury, and is admitted at Kigali Health Centre (CHK). “The concert was attended mostly by the underage (below 18). We didn’t expect concert organizers to let young adults attend to such night events. Also, the venue was too small to accommodate all his fans,” Uwamungu said. The furious Police Spokesman added that, “Our immediate measure was to stop the concert in order to protect the under age and other people from more chaos.” Uwamungu added The Ben’s case should be a lesson to all artists intending to organize such shows, advising that they should also collaborate with the police, in order to make their concerts successful. Meanwhile, The Ben has denied all the allegations, saying that the police was aware about his concert. However, the R’n’B star has promised a mega concert to his fans, who supported him during the harsh situation. Ends
