Security Consultant Richard Kumadoe has described as “unfortunate” the timing of government’s directive for bereaved families of the El-Wak Stadium tragedy to submit names of qualified relatives for automatic recruitment into the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF).
Speaking on Joy Prime’s Prime Insight on Saturday, November 15, Mr. Kumadoe said the gesture, though generous in principle, risks deepening the grief of families who are yet to bury their loved ones.
“That one is also a little unfortunate,” he said. “The mothers who send their children who lost their lives did not send them because they want replacement for them, particularly when we have not buried them. So in as much as it’s an opportunity, and people may say it looks sweet, the timing is a little bit of an issue.”
He argued that presenting the offer at such an emotionally sensitive moment could be misinterpreted or even rejected by the grieving families.
Mr. Kumadoe also raised concerns about compensation arrangements for the injured, noting that the nature and degree of injuries could determine whether civilian employment or another form of support is appropriate.
His comments follow government’s announcement that families of the six young applicants who died in Wednesday’s stampede at the El-Wak Stadium should submit names of qualified relatives for GAF recruitment.
The tragedy occurred during a mass recruitment documentation and body selection exercise, where a sudden surge of applicants led to a deadly crush that killed six and left many injured.
During a visit to one of the bereaved families at Eyan Maim in the Central Region, Deputy Defence Minister Ernest Brogya Genfi disclosed that President John Dramani Mahama had directed that each affected family be offered an automatic slot in the Armed Forces as a form of support.