All is set for the State funeral of the eight victims of the military helicopter crash, slated for Friday, August 15, at 0730 hours at the Blackstar Square in Accra.
Mr Stanislav Xoese Dogbe, the Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of Operations at the Presidency, unveiled the Government’s detailed plans for the State funeral at a pre-funeral press conference at the Blackstar Square in Accra.
The eight national heroes lost their lives on August 6, 2025, military helicopter tragedy at Adansi Akrofuom in the Ashanti Region while on a national duty
They include Dr Edward Kofi Omane Boamah, Minister for Defence, and Dr Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed, Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, and Member of Parliament for Tamale Central.
Others are Alhaji Limuna Muniru Mohammed, Deputy National Security Coordinator; Dr Samuel Sarpong, National Vice Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC); and Samuel Aboagye, Deputy Director-General of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) and a former NDC Parliamentary Candidate for Obuasi East.
The rest are Squadron Leader Peter Bafemi Anala; Flying Officer Mane-Twum Ampadu, and Sergeant Ernest Addo Mensah, all of the Ghana Air Force.
Dr Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed and Alhaji Limuna Muniru Mohammed were buried on Sunday, August 10, 2025, in line with Islamic tradition.
Mr Dogbe said the State funeral, which would begin at 0730 hours, would take approximately three hours.
He said that during which the biographies of the departed eight colleagues would be followed by tributes from the widows, children, parents, siblings and colleagues of the departed.
Mr Dogbe noted that there would be other tributes that would be read by some Government officials.
He noted that all institutional tributes – tributes from the various institutions that their departed comrades worked with or associated with would be ready during the pre-burial period before 0900 hours.
The Deputy Chief of Staff said after the service, the bodies of the six that were yet to be buried would be conveyed to the Military Cemetery at Tse Addo for burial.
He said the Ghana Armed Forces, together with the churches of the six departed comrades, would take charge of the burial ceremony at the military cemetery.
He said that because of the rather large number of people expected at the event, a number of measures had been taken to ensure a very solemn ceremony.
He entreated the public who would want to join them for the service to arrive early and collaborate with the protocol and security officials on the ground to assist them in sitting.
“We do not expect people to be crossing the inner perimeter before and during the service.”
He said the inner perimeter of the Blackstar Square was going to be locked out and that the mourners were expected to remain under the canopies for the service.
Mr Dogbe said the canopies would be labelled to ensure orderly sitting arrangements.
He explained that there would be heavy security deployment, obviously not because the President and the Vice President would be there, but also for the safety of all mourners who were going to be there.
“We therefore entreat the mourning public to collaborate with the security officers as it relates to their walking in, their parking, and others.”
Mr Dogbe said that those driving would be required to park their cars at designated points and walk into the mourning zone.
Touching on the cemetery, he said arrangements had been made to provide buses to convey the families that would be heading to the military cemetery.
“The idea is to reduce the traffic en route to the cemetery and also manage the traffic at the cemetery because if we allow everybody to just drive in there, the number of vehicles there will be a lot,” he said.
Dogbe said buses would be provided to convey the six families and a few others to the cemetery.
“If you get to the cemetery, please listen to the military police that will be on standby, who will be working on parking and designated areas where we can go and where we cannot go.”
With relation to the media, Mr Dogbe said a statement had already been issued earlier by the Minister of State for Government Communications on arrangements that had been made for the State funeral service.
He said media accreditation would be provided for only camera holders, video camera operators and photographers who had applied for it.
“They are the only ones that are going to be allowed in the inner perimeter. Reporters and others are not going to be in the perimeter,” he said.
“You are welcome to join the mourners.
You are also welcome to use the media stands on this end or on the left end and be able to follow proceedings and report back to your media houses.”
He said allocations had also been made for audio feed at the event.
He noted that stands for radio stations that want to set up for their outside broadcasts from the Blackstar Square, set up their studios for outside broadcasts, they were welcome to set up there and that they would have an audio feed for their work.
“Television stations that also want to set up and broadcast from here are also welcome to set up behind the left stand very close to the OB (Outside Broadcasting) van that is there, and a few outlets are going to be available for clean feed of the proceedings here for you to use for your productions.”
Air Commodore Thomas Niifio Okai of the Ghana Armed Forces said the State funeral service would essentially be military in nature.
He said the Ghana Armed Forces had the responsibility of moving the nation’s fallen heroes from the morgue to the Blackstar Square and then to the military cemetery after the funeral service.
He said the service would be led by the
Chaplaincy of the Ghana Armed Forces, saying “That does not mean that only ministers, pastors and imams from the Armed Forces will be in charge”.
“We would be supported by some of our civilian colleagues, but in essence, it will be a military service.”
The Police had already given notice to the public that there would be traffic diversions on roads leading to Blackstar Square, the venue of the State funeral, to ensure safe passage for mourners.
