President John Dramani Mahama has called confirmed that all six people who lost their lives during the ongoing Ghana Armed Forces recruitment exercise at Accra’s Elwak Sports Stadium on Wednesday were female applicants.
The tragic incident, which has left the nation in mourning, reportedly resulted from a stampede as crowds surged during the initial screening phase.
Addressing the media hours after the incident, President Mahama expressed profound sorrow over the loss and detailed the circumstances that led to the stampede.
“Earlier today, we suffered a devastating incident during the Armed Forces recruitment exercise. This tragedy has touched us all,” he stated.
President Mahama explained that the open advertisement of the military recruitment was in fulfillment of his campaign pledge to ensure fairness and regional equity in job opportunities for Ghana’s youth.
“In the past, such recruitments were conducted discreetly; selections were made without public knowledge. But we promised Ghanaians during our 2024 campaign that any future military recruitment would be openly advertised to give all youth, regardless of region, a fair chance to apply,” he noted.
He recounted that once registration was announced, overwhelming numbers of young people responded through the online portal. The large turnout in Accra, being the nation’s capital, led to intense crowd pressure.
“Every region’s applicants were told where to report, and in Accra, the numbers far exceeded expectations. Unfortunately, the excessive crowd caused a stampede, resulting in people falling and being trampled underfoot,” Mahama explained.
The President revealed that, as of Wednesday afternoon, six young female applicants had been confirmed dead, while twelve others remained in critical condition at the hospital, with hopes for their swift recovery.
The military officials have informed us that the six people who lost their lives are all female,” President Mahama stated.
Additionally, one applicant in Kumasi was also reported critically injured and is receiving treatment.
In response to the incident, President Mahama announced an immediate suspension of the Accra screening exercise.
“I have directed military officials to halt the process at Elwak and to review the arrangements to ensure such a tragedy is never repeated,” he declared.
