After the loss of 127 lives following the disaster that characterized a league match between Hearts of Oak and Kotoko on May 9, 2001, it has been a yearly affair for an event, most at times a football match to commemorate that sad incident.
Since 2002, stakeholders have met yearly to express condolences to the bereaved families and have shown remorse for incidents that led to the death of the soccer loving people.
Though it has become significant that this day is commemorated each year just in remembrance of the lost souls, some sports persons think the celebration shouldn’t be a yearly ritual.
In their view it is better for such a day to be commemorated at periodic intervals and not necessarily on yearly basis.
According to Happy FM’s seasoned Sports Presenter, Odiasempa Kwame Oware, the celebration should be extended to be a fifteen year affair and then systematically extended to twenty and fifty years rather than getting celebrated each year.
He made his views known on e.tv Ghana’s live Sports talk show, Happy Sports on Wednesday morning.
In his view, the celebration has lost the needed significance due to the annual celebration with considerable amount of people giving it the needed attention.
“We can extend the celebrations to five years, then to fifteen years, then to twenty years before fifty years maybe so the significance of the day can be felt across the country”. He said.
“At the moment it seems we are celebrating the day just anyhow which eventually doesn’t inspire interest at all”.
He asked for a May 9th Committee to be set up to make the celebrations more involving and beneficial to the families of the lost victims if need be.
A co-panelist on the show, which is hosted by Nana Kweku Aduah of e.tv Sports team, Joe Jasmin, the two teams that were involved in the said game could play a game to raise some money for the families of the disaster victims if a committee is set up to agree to Odiasempa’s suggestion.
On that sad day, Kumasi Asante Kotoko lost the league game against Hearts and angered fans of the Kumasi club reacted to a refereeing decision which led to tear gas firing by the Police on duty that night.
127 football fans eventually lost their lives when gates to the stadium were still closed though the tear gas firing was intended to lead them out of the stadium.
On yearly basis, the day has been commemorated at the stadium with 2012’s event being marked by a hurriedly arranged football match between the Black Satellites and Black Starlets of Ghana.
Benjamin Agyei-Boateng/happyghana.com
