President John Dramani Mahama has made an impassioned plea to Ghanaians to rally behind the children of the eight public servants who lost their lives in the August 6, 2025, helicopter crash, urging the nation to turn grief into an enduring act of collective compassion.
Speaking at the solemn State Funeral held at the Black Star Square in Accra on Friday, August 15, 2025, President Mahama announced the establishment of a Children’s Support Fund — a national initiative designed to provide sustained educational, healthcare and welfare support to the children left behind by the tragedy.
He urged individuals, institutions, civil society and the corporate sector to contribute generously to the fund, stressing that the well-being of these children must not become an afterthought in the wake of the devastating incident.
“Their children must not be the collateral damage of this tragedy,” the President declared. “Let us leave our eight comrades today with the promise that their children will not be alone — that they’ve got us and we will always be there to share and walk with them into their future.”
Fund to secure a stable future for the children
The Children’s Support Fund, according to the President, will be used to finance the education of the eight children from primary school right through to tertiary education or technical training.
It will also provide health insurance and cover the costs of any specialised medical care they may require.
In addition, the fund will ensure that the children have access to basic welfare support, including shelter, clothing and other essential living expenses.
By design, the initiative is aimed at shielding the children from economic hardship while ensuring they have every opportunity to thrive, despite the sudden loss of their parents.
President Mahama stressed that such an approach would help preserve the dignity of the bereaved families and prevent the children from experiencing the secondary trauma of neglect or deprivation.
A call to revive communal responsibility
In his address, President Mahama invoked Ghana’s long-standing tradition of communal living, reminding citizens of a culture where the community takes collective responsibility for the welfare of vulnerable members.
He recalled how neighbours often step in to raise the children of relatives in financial distress, pay the school fees of a domestic worker’s child, or even settle the medical bills of complete strangers.
“This tragedy is not just a moment for mourning — it is an opportunity to renew our commitment to care for one another, especially the children who now face life without their parents,” he said.
“It is this culture of shared responsibility that has held us together as a people, and it is what will sustain these children in the years to come.”
The President noted that such acts of kindness, often performed quietly without expectation of reward, are the hallmark of Ghana’s identity and must be preserved in times of national tragedy.
A personal testament of care
To illustrate his point, President Mahama shared a deeply personal example.
He recounted how, years earlier, he had taken responsibility for a nine-year-old physically disabled boy, covering the full cost of a surgery that changed the child’s life.
He even wrote the boy a poem to encourage him before the procedure, underscoring his belief that compassion must be both practical and emotional.
“This was not an act for recognition — it was simply the right thing to do,” he told the crowd.
“The same spirit should guide us now as we rally around the children of our eight fallen heroes.”
Honouring the fallen
The August 6 crash claimed the lives of eight dedicated public servants, including the late Dr. Edward Omane Boamah, Minister of Defence, whose contributions to national security were lauded at the ceremony.
The victims were described as individuals who had served Ghana with distinction and paid the ultimate price in the line of duty.
The State Funeral brought together family members, friends, colleagues, members of the diplomatic community and citizens from across the country, united in grief but also in a shared determination to honour the legacy of the departed.
Solidarity from home and abroad
President Mahama expressed his heartfelt gratitude to all who had stood with the nation and the bereaved families since the tragedy.
This included members of the diplomatic corps, who had sent messages of condolence and attended the funeral in a show of international solidarity.
“It is this solidarity that affirms the strength of our national and international spirit,” he said. “It tells us that even in our darkest hours, we are not alone.”
A loss beyond explanation
The President acknowledged that no amount of investigation or technical explanation into the cause of the crash would ever make sense to the grieving families.
“The magnitude and manner in which these eight individuals died will never be rationalised in the hearts of those they left behind,” he said.
He described the tragedy as a wound on the nation’s soul — one that would take time to heal.
Yet, he expressed optimism that Ghana could emerge from this sorrow with a renewed sense of purpose and unity.
Turning tragedy into renewal
President Mahama called for the tragedy to serve as a turning point — a moment from which Ghana could draw strength to build a more peaceful, compassionate and prosperous future.
He encouraged citizens to extend kindness not only to the children of the fallen, but also to others in their communities who face hardship.
“I pray that this funeral will bring closure to a grieving nation and that a new dawn will break,” he said.
“May this be the beginning of a healing process, and may the Almighty God bless and heal our land.”
The road ahead for the fund
While the establishment of the Children’s Support Fund was met with widespread approval at the ceremony, the true measure of its success will depend on the sustained commitment of Ghanaians and their institutions.
The President urged that contributions should not be viewed as a one-off gesture but as an ongoing investment in the futures of these children.
Government sources indicated that mechanisms would be put in place to ensure transparency and accountability in the management of the fund, including the involvement of trusted oversight bodies and regular public reporting.
This, they said, would help to maintain public confidence and encourage continuous support.
A national test of compassion
The August 6 helicopter crash has tested Ghana’s capacity for resilience and compassion.
For President Mahama, the Children’s Support Fund is both a tribute to the lives lost and a practical means of turning grief into hope.
His appeal was not merely for donations, but for a renewal of the social contract between citizens — a reaffirmation that in Ghana, no child should be left to face life’s hardships alone.
As the coffins of the eight fallen heroes were laid to rest under the gaze of the nation, the message from the President was clear: the truest honour we can pay the dead is to protect and nurture the living they leave behind.
Ghana lost eight individuals through a tragic military helicopter crash at Sikaman, in the Adansi Akrofuom District, while heading for the launch of the Responsible Cooperative Mining and Skills Development Programme (rCOMSDEP) at Obuasi in the Ashanti Region.
The deceased were Dr Edward Omane Boamah, Minister of Defence, Dr. Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed, Minister of Environment, Science and Technology and Alhaji Muniru Mohammed, Acting Deputy National Security Coordinator.
The others were Dr. Samuel Sarpong, Vice Chairman, NDC, Samuel Aboagye, a former Parliamentary Candidate, Obuasi East, Squadron Leader Peter Bafemi Anala, pilot, Flying Officer Twum Ampadu, Co-Pilot, and Sergeant Ernest Addo, Flight Engineer, all of the Ghana Armed Forces.
All eight were given a State burial and laid to rest at the Military Cemetery at Tse-Addo in the La Dade-Kotopon Municipality of Accra.
