President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo says his government stands committed to offering the needed support to the May 9 Foundation to enable it carry out its charity activities and campaign to ensure that the unfortunate incident does not reoccur.
“You will have the modest support that this administration will be able to give you. I can promise you that,” he said.
The President gave the assurance when some of the victims of the 2001 May 9 stadium disaster paid a courtesy call on him at Jubilee House yesterday.
The stadium disaster on May 9, 2001 claimed the lives of over 126 Ghanaian football fans at the Accra Sports Stadium during a football game between Accra Hearts of Oak and Kumasi Asante Kotoko.
The President commiserated with the victims of the disaster, and reiterated government’s commitment, through the Ministry of Youth and Sports and other relevant agencies, to ensuring that the disaster does not repeat itself.
Memories
He commended the founding members of the Foundation for keeping the memory of the victims of the disaster and engaging in other philanthropic activities at ensuring that surviving members of victims can look to the future with hope.
“I am happy that we have Ghanaians of your calibre who have made a decision about May 9th,” he noted
The President was intrigued to learn that the Foundation had expanded its reach beyond football to embrace a wider social space involving dislocation of people by floods and other disasters.
“This is a huge undertaking and you need a lot of courage and capacity to be able to carry it out well,” he added.
A former Kumasi Asante Kotoko chairman and philanthropist, Herbert Mensah, who has over the years championed the memory of the May 9 victims through the May 9 Foundation, reiterated his commitment to offering the needed support to families of the perished souls.
The Foundation has, since its establishment, embarked on several charity activities, including donations to families of victims, awareness street walks to remind Ghanaians of the tragic incident and the need for all and sundry to work at ensuring that such tragic incident does not occur in the history of the country’s sporting activities.
Mr Herbert Mensah was particularly grateful to the President for the support over the years and being the first siting president to grant audience to the victims of the disaster.
“In 20 years, it is gratifying to have a president who cares,” he said.
About The Author
