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On Wednesday evening, thousands of people gathered in Koforidua for a mournful candlelight parade and vigil in honor of the late Defense Minister Dr. Edward Kofi Omane Boamah and the seven other people who perished in the helicopter crash at Adansi Akrufuom on August 6.
Part of the one-week remembrance activities for the victims, the ceremony was organized by the NDC’s Eastern Regional branch in collaboration with the bereaved families, clergy, traditional authorities, and civic organizations.
At Jackson Park, mourners gathered for a durbar before to the vigil, where prayers were said for the deceased and tributes were read. The profound sadness that was consuming the area was subsequently reflected in the candlelit parade that lit up the streets of Koforidua.
According to Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, Policy Advisor in the Office of the Vice President, Dr. Omane Boamah was a “selfless leader whose service to Ghana went beyond politics.”
Rita Akosua Adjei, the Eastern Regional Minister, said the incident had left the region with “a painful void.”
Dr. Mark Oliver Kevor, the regional chairman of the NDC, referred to him as “a pillar of the party in Eastern Region,” while Evelyn Korang, a member of the Council of State, recalled how the late minister’s advice influenced her political career.
There was a palpable sense of sadness as family members and locals gathered at the Mponua family home in Koforidua-Effiduase, the birthplace and upbringing of Dr. Omane Boamah. As family elders met with government representatives to plan for burial, the compound was decked out with obituary banners.
The late minister’s family is pleading with the administration to preserve his legacy. Effiduase’s Mponuahemaa, Nana Adusi Pokua Antwiwaa II, suggested renaming the Abrewankwanta roundabout in his honor and erecting a statue in his honor.
Additionally, she proposed naming a ward at Koforidua-Effiduase’s new Eastern Regional Hospital in honor of Dr. Omane Boamah.
“We don’t want his name to be forgotten. If a roundabout or a hospital ward is named after him, it will be a lasting memory of his service to Ghana,” she said.
The family insists that the 40-day observance and last funeral rites be held at Koforidua-Effiduase, his hometown, even though they have agreed for the state burial to take place in Accra on Friday, August 15 at Black Star Square.
Source: Ghanatodayonline.com
