Former Greater Accra Regional Minister, Daniel Nii Kwartei Titus Glover, has criticised the government’s decision to proceed with the July 1 National Day of Prayer and Thanksgiving, arguing that it should instead have been declared a National Day of Mourning in honour of victims of the recent floods in parts of the country.
He said the scale of the tragedy required national reflection and solidarity rather than a celebratory thanksgiving programme.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s The Big Issue, Mr. Glover called for a moment of silence for victims of the disaster, describing disturbing scenes of loss and devastation.
“First of all, I think that we need to observe some minutes of silence on this show for those 32 Ghanaians who have lost their lives,” he said.
He recounted reports of entire families being swept away by floodwaters, including a family of eight living in makeshift structures.
“When we sit back and watch the TV, where people have been washed in this water… at a point in time, I was told that a family of eight, a couple and six of their children who live in the kiosks were taken away by these floods,” he said.
Mr. Glover also described scenes of people trapped in floodwaters with little chance of survival, citing a case of a man seen inside a wooden kiosk being carried away by rising waters.
He questioned the appropriateness of holding the National Day of Prayer and Thanksgiving amid such national tragedy, saying the event should have been cancelled or converted into a mourning ceremony.
“That is why some of us were not comfortable when His Excellency the President, on the 1st of July, the thanksgiving that he did… they could have turned that thanksgiving to a day of mourning, because we have lost lives,” he stated.
He added that Ghana has previously observed national mourning in response to major national tragedies and argued that a similar approach should have been taken.
“We could have used that opportunity… just like we did for our comrades who passed in that crash,” he said.
Mr. Glover further referenced public backlash following the event, saying the optics of holding a thanksgiving service during a period of national loss were unfortunate.
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