Tears in Effiduase as residents mourn Defence Minister Dr Omane Boamah

Residents of Koforidua and Effiduase in the Eastern Region were thrown into a state of shock and confusion last Wednesday following the tragic death of the Minister for Defence, Dr Edward Omane Boamah.

Dr Omane Boamah was among eight individuals who perished in a helicopter crash in the Ashanti Region.

At Effiduase, a suburb of Koforidua in the New Juaben North Municipality and the family home of the late minister, hundreds of mourners from all walks of life gathered to console the bereaved family.

Among those present were regional and constituency executives of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), led by the Eastern Regional First Vice Chairman, Ransford Owusu-Boakye, who is also the Municipal Chief Executive for New Juaben South.

Several friends of the late minister also visited his Effiduase residence to sympathise with his family.

Collins Agyapong, a resident of Effiduase, told the Daily Graphic that he received news of Dr Omane Boamah’s passing as a devastating blow, describing him as a gentleman and God-fearing individual.

He said the late minister was generous and caring towards many in Effiduase and surrounding communities, adding that “leaving the people now was not the best, but God knows best.”

Meanwhile, a high-powered delegation comprising government ministers and national party executives, including the Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh; the Presidential Advisor and Special Aide to the President, Joyce Bawah Mogtari; and the NDC National Chairman, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, was led by the Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, to the family home.

The delegation officially informed the deceased's mother, Madam Leticia Omane Boamah, of the tragic incident and narrated to her the circumstances surrounding her son’s death.

She was later conveyed to Accra in the vehicle of the Health Minister.

When GraphicOnline visited the residence of the late minister, grief-stricken family members were seen wailing and calling out his name, visibly shaken by the loss of the family’s breadwinner.

Hundreds of mourners, clad in red and black, continued to pour into the house to commiserate with the family.

The late minister is survived by his wife, Rita Omane Boamah, and three children—two girls and a boy.