On his social media accounts, Branch expressed his condolences to the families affected by the tragedy, while labeling the charges against the event's organizers as “absurd.”
He raised concerns about the rationale behind their arrest, pointing out that the funfair was set to begin at 10 a.m., with security personnel scheduled to arrive by 8 a.m.
However, it was reported that some parents had started throwing their children over the fence into the venue the night prior to the event.
The actor condemned the actions of these parents, claiming they jeopardized their children's safety and urged law enforcement to hold them responsible instead of penalizing the event organizers.
Branch defended Queen Naomi and Oriyomi Hamzat, asserting that their goal was to provide a positive experience for the community through the event.
He contended that their arrest established a “dangerous precedent” and called on the public to oppose what he termed an injustice.
He demanded the swift release of the organizers and the prosecution of the parents who contributed to the disorder by throwing their children over the fence.
“I want to believe they have very good lawyers because this case is nonsense. This is not me being insensitive to the plight of the children who died; it is very tragic. But if the purpose is to punish those responsible for the death, how is it the organisers? Let’s look at the facts on the ground. The event was supposed to start by 10 am; the security personnel were supposed to arrive by 8.
“The venue was locked and wasn’t meant to be opened until the security personnel arrived by 8 for an event that was supposed to start by 10. From the reports we have, people came overnight; they started arriving overnight and began throwing their children over the fence and into the compound. I saw a very tragic incident where, as the mother threw her child over the fence, the child hit their head and died instantly. So how is this the fault of the organisers?
“Is it a problem to do good in this country right now because we are dealing with so much, and a few people try once in a while with the little God has blessed them with to help people’s lives? This situation can happen to anybody. We understand the root cause of this matter is that there’s hunger in the land, but is it hunger that will make you endanger the life of your child? Throwing your child over a fence? How bad is that hunger? I think we’re sick; we’re not well as a people.
“And now the poor organisers who are trying to be a blessing are arrested and charged to court. What is going on? Don’t tell me you’re just trying to make an example of them. To what end exactly? We need to be careful because we’re setting a very terrible precedent. I think people need to speak up about this. Why have the police not fished out those parents who threw their children over the fence and also charged them? Because, as far as I’m concerned, those are the real offenders.
“These people should be set free; they should be released and let those parents who threw their children over the fence be arrested and prosecuted; those are the real offenders.”