Discovery of mass grave is hoax

Accra, June 28, GNA - Alleged discovery of mass graves of victims of the April 8 Volta Lake disaster by a section of the mass media is a hoax, Mr Justice Kofi Essel Mensah, Chairman of the Investigative Committee set up by the government stated on Wednesday.

"The pictures were not new discoveries, but the gravesides of the 10 confirmed dead victims of the disaster," he said.

"One grave contained six victims, another contained the bodies of three children and the last had the body of 70 year old Gado Zamanama," Mr Mensah stated during the presentation of their Report to the Minister of Harbours and Railways in Accra.

An Accra newspaper, had alleged that four mass graves had been found with a total of 23 bodies. The chairman said, however, that after thorough investigations, including interviews with victims' relatives, listening to witnesses from members of the rescue team and interacting with communities around the Lake, "we are of the firm belief that only ten people died".

They were Yayra Tobo, aged one year eight months; Kweku Ahiagba, three years; Bright McCarthy, one year seven months; Doe Tabo, eight years; Fati Hassan, seven years; Lydia Ahiagba, five years; Lamin Siedu, 16 years; Mami Labila, a 41-year-old pregnant woman, Ama Bedra, 46 and Gado Zamanama, 70.

He said the pictures published by the newspaper were not new or secret graves but the same graves of those who died.

The Ghana Panel and Justice System Observatory, a social-legal advocacy organization, recently cited some public officials liable for the accident and threatened to sue them, while the newspaper reported the discovery of the mass graves by its investigative team.

The Committee debunked the newspaper report, but did not give further details of its findings and recommendations.

"Our responsibility was to present the report to the appointing authorities, and it is government's duty to either make the report public or not."

Professor Christopher Ameya-Akumfi, Minister of Harbours and Railways, who received the report on behalf of the government said a White Paper would be issued in due course.

He commended the Committee for a thorough work done within a short time and assured the media that the recommendations would receive due attention from the ministries of Harbours and Railways and Lands, Forestry and Mines."

Prof Ameyaw-Akumfi who again defended the formation of the Committee, which a section of the media considered a waste of national resources, said: "No two individuals are the same. This particular accident has the semblance of correlation with the eviction of settlers."

He said the two ministries would continue to implement the recommendations of the Justice Paul Gyaesayor Committee established in April 2002 to investigate an earlier boat disaster on April 18, 2002 on the Lake.

The Justice Gyaesayor Committee established that overloading and indiscipline were the causes of that accident, which claimed the life of about 50 persons made up of 36 children, two men and 12 women.

The Committee established that the boat designed to carry 53 passengers, had 88 passengers on board in addition to goods.

It recommended that t he large stretch of the Volta Lake required an efficient and effective lake transport facility and appealed to the government to implement the recommendations in the report to avoid future disasters on the Lake.

Others members of the Justice Mensah Committee were Mrs Bernadette Esa Chinery-Hesse of the Ghana Maritime Authority, Member Secretary, Professor Eric Quaye of the University of Ghana, Captain Aaron Turkson of the Regional Maritime Academy and Nana Osei-Boakye IV, Gyasehene of Jasikan.

The rest were Commander Moses Beick-Baffour, Ghana Maritime Authority/Ghana Navy, Mr Bright Obeng-Boampong, Acting Managing Director of the Volta Lake Transport Company Limited, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) George Yeboah Afari and Dr Mamaa Entsua-Mensah of the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

Its terms of reference were to investigate the cause of the

accident and the loss of human lives; investigate and

establish the actual number of human lives lost as a result of

the accident; to examine the extent to which the Wildlife

Division's evacuation exercise was linked to the boat disaster

and make recommendations on any matter related to the

accident." The boat christened "Born Again", was involved in an accident on the Volta Lake, near Tapa-Abotoase in the Jasikan District of the Volta Region. Initial reports said more than 120 people perished in the accident.