On May 9, 2001, it was officially recorded that 126 lives were lost in an incident at the Accra Sports Stadium after a match between Accra Hearts of Oak and Kumasi Asante Kotoko.
The tragedy, the worst to have been recorded in Ghana’s football history, came about following an overreaction from the police who threw teargas into the crowd in a bid to disperse a group of irate fans who had lost their cool and were ripping off the plastic seats in the stands.
The pandemonium that followed was unimaginable and not only were those lives snuffed out, but many have been left with permanent physical disabilities and emotional trauma while some were deprived of their breadwinners.
Between 2001 and as recent as last Monday (May 8), football matches in Ghana continue to record pockets of violence, often carried out by fans and there is no consideration at all – match officials, journalists, players and club officials, as well as police personnel on duty, have all been at the receiving end.
Yet, no one, not a single person has been prosecuted and sentenced to serve as a strong deterrent.
Most connoisseurs of the game believe not many people care about this and nothing has been done to ensure that indeed, never again, is football taken through such a dark moment as very little has been done as individuals or collectively as a society to forestall another human-induced tragedy.
Source: culled from wires
