Pusiga MP has sparked controversy by saying that no one could have prevented the deaths of six young people killed in a stampede at a military recruitment exercise, attributing the tragedy to divine will.
“There is nothing that happens that doesn’t happen at the right time. This is what the almighty Allah has ordained for them,” said Laadi Ayii Ayamba, member of Parliament for Pusiga, in a statement on the floor Ghana’s Parliament. “Today is their day. No matter how, no matter what, no matter who was there… once today is ordained for them to die, they will.”
The stampede occurred Wednesday morning at the El-Wak Sports Stadium in Accra when thousands of job seekers rushed the gates ahead of a scheduled screening for the Ghana Armed Forces’ 2025/2026 recruitment exercise. President John Dramani Mahama confirmed that all six victims were female and that a similar incident in Kumasi left others injured.
“It is not anybody who wanted them to die,” Ms. Ayamba continued in her parliamentary remarks. “There is no single officer there who wanted even one single soul to pass. Not even one person hoped and prayed that one person would die there.”
The lawmaker’s comments came as Mahama ordered the suspension of the recruitment exercise. Some analysts have blamed poor planning for the incident, noting that decentralization of such exercises could prevent future stampedes.
Ms. Ayamba called for unity and urged lawmakers not to view the tragedy through a political lens. “Who knows whether they voted for NDC, NPP, PNC or even they never voted,” she said. “But here we are, we are worried. We are not happy because we didn’t wish them [that] and we never thought of that.”
The MP suggested that future recruitment exercises should be decentralized by districts or even constituencies rather than having applicants travel long distances to central locations. “It can even be by constituency,” she said. “After all, they are all Ghanaians, and they are our people.”
The Ghana Armed Forces said the stampede was triggered by an unexpected surge of applicants at approximately 6:20 a.m. At least 12 others were injured and taken to 37 Military Hospital for treatment.
Source: a1radioonline.com|101.1Mhz|Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Bolgatanga
