TREATING THE FIRE/ FLOOD VICTIMS AS PIECE OF TRASH...#THISMUSTSTOP.

         

As I write this piece of article about the Goil  filling station fire explosion, I do not intend to talk about what caused it or who caused it. Enough has been said already. I just want to draw our attention to a very sickening observation made in the aftermath of the tragedy.

Although this is not the first time this is happening,yet it was shocking to see it happening in the full glare of authorities.
As reported earlier, the people who died in the fire were believed to be stranded passengers, drivers and pedestrians who were either stacked in traffic or had gone to seek shelter at the filling station from the heavy down pour on that fateful day.

Tragically they met their untimely death. Responding to the distress calls, Ghana Fire Service and the Police according to reports swiftly rushed to help quench the fire and to also rescue victims
To show support and sympathy, many leaders from across the country including the President have visited the scene and in describing those who died,  this phrase ' Burnt Beyond Recognition "  was on the lips of almost  all of them.

Undoubtedly,to the ordinary person, the victims were burnt beyond recognition however, one would have thought that with all these big bosses from the various security agencies at the scene, at least some forensic effort would be made to identify if not all some of the victims to console their families. That was not done. They rather chose the "Normal" and easiest way like we see  every day in such cases to just draw a conclusion that non could be recognise and to further bruise the wounds of their families, dumped them like piece of trash.

 I could not believe my eyes to see how the deceased persons were being parked and virtually thrown onto each other in a pick-up truck like some wasted animals in the presence of the police and worse of it all, a minister of State, Mahama Ayariga was captured in a TV interview pathetically pointing the cameras to the pick-up truck that was loading those  who died at the scene.

And the police who was suppose to guard the scene as a crime scene just stood by and allowed people including the media who out of curiosity and lack of respect for human dignity took pictures of the dead bodies  and carelessly shared it on all the media platforms without any thoughts of bluring the gory images. Where did we go so wrong that simple common sense seems to have eluded us.

As people, we do lots of many things wrong and makes them appear normal. It is simple absurd and so unprofessional to treat people like that.  Every person, whether dead or alive deserves to be treated with some respect and dignity. Most often when we try to correct the way we carelessly do things by comparing it to the developed country , others are quick to argue that Ghana is not America or Europe and that we are not there yet.The question is, when?? after 58 years of managing our own affairs.
 Meanwhile it will interest you to know that some of this state officials and so-called experts demand their salaries in Dollars and want to be paid with same standards as their International colleagues.
What more then  will be the game-changer for Ghana. This tragedy did not happened in any where remote other than Circle, right at the center of the capital city, Accra, where all the headquarters of these state institutions and security agencies are located.

Today, #Ghanamourns and we hope this will never happen again. However, the raining season will end and as usual politics will take the better part of all the promises, assurances and the directives forgetting that over 150 precious lives perished in this tragedy and that we owe their souls the obligation to do the right things. Lets all have some respect for ourselves and make the system work.
Doing things the wrong way dose not make them Normal.
In solidarity to the families and the memory of the victims I join my colleagues in Citifm in saying #thismuststop.