by Isi Esene
The Police in Ghana have announced their intention to investigate the stampede at the Ghana branch of the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) which reportedly caused the death of several worshipers.
The Ghanaian media reported that there was a stampede when several members of the church, located at Spintex Road, Accra rushed for ‘Holy Water’ distributed during the church service.
According to the spokesman of the police in Accra, Freeman Tetteh, a thorough investigation will be conducted to get to the bottom of the unfortunate incident.
He said the eagerness of worshipers may have caused the problem but the police will definitely do its job to uncover what led to the problem.
“The church was also caught by surprise… Nobody can apportion blame [at this stage].
“We need to investigate and establish responsibility.”
“But the police is determined to get to the root of the problem, we are swinging into action immediately to uncover what led to the problem,’’ he said.
On his own part, the former Coordinator of Ghana’s National Disaster Management Organisation, Douglas Asiedu, called on churches to adhere to safety rules in the interest of the lives of worshipers.
He said, “It is also the responsibility of the security agencies, especially the Police to ensure that all churches strictly follow safety procedures while assembling worshipers.
“There is nothing wrong for churches to invite the Police and other safety organs to coordinate and ensure crowd control during services that command a large crowd,’’ he reportedly concluded.
Its a tragedy