Ghana has just witnessed a state funeral of rare dignity-a beautifully executed, state-of-the-art ceremony that brought the nation together in grief, pride, and solemn respect. My commendation to the team at the presidency that put together that ceremony. The glowing tributes from government, families, friends, and citizens painted a fitting picture of the eight gallant souls we lost on August 6 in the Adansi Brofoyedur helicopter crash.
But as the last notes of the funeral dirges fade and the wreaths begin to wilt, we must remind ourselves of a hard truth: the highest honour we can give the eight fallen heroes is not in our tears and sympathies, but in bold concerted actions to ensure such a tragedy never repeats itself.
Beyond the tributes, the Presidency, leadership of National Security Architecture, parliamentarians and CSOs must converge at the table and take decisive steps to keep another August 6 from ever happening again. Today we buried our heroes and mourned in solidarity. Tomorrow we must bury the dangers that caused their deaths. Every word that will be captured on the investigative report from the crisis must be analyzed with every logical rigor and no partisan sentiment. The mission they were on-a service to the nation to combat the scourge of illegal mining must not die with them.
Galamsey is no longer just an environmental issue; it is a national security threat. The time for a state of emergency is now. We owe it to the fallen eight especially, and to all who are expending resources to combat illegal mining, to wage war on illegal mining with the same urgency we would if foreign forces threatened our borders. Government must marshal every resource-legislative, security, and judicial to dismantle the networks that profit from the destruction of our lands and rivers.
Equally urgent is the need to confront another enemy that reared its head after the crash: the wildfire of falsehoods and wild speculation on social media. In the hours after the tragedy, rumours and conspiracy theories flooded digital spaces, compounding the grief of families and tarnishing the dignity of the dead. Wild speculation on social media is our unseen enemy — it wounds the truth and dishonours the fallen. Our national Cyber Security Architecture must wage war against this menace, and those who deliberately spread falsehoods must face real consequences. A simple national crusade against false publications can bear the tagline: “if you can’t prove it, don’t post it” should be rolled out to rally the citizenry along the fight against misinformation and disinformation.
Our grief must be the fuel for our resolve: to protect our land, protect our truth, and protect our people. If the eight who died in service to Ghana could speak, I dare say that they would not ask for flowers — they would ask for justice, action, and change.
The funeral is over. The tributes have been said. Now is the time for those with the power to prevent another tragedy to rise, act, and lead. act. That means life imprisonment for galamsey offences, laws against indecent disaster behaviour, and a national education drive to restore respect and dignity in times of grief.
