Ghana is in mourning following the tragic deaths of Defence Minister Edward Omane Boamah and Environment Minister Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, who perished in a helicopter crash on Wednesday morning alongside six others, including key political and security figures.
The incident, confirmed in a statement from the Office of the President, occurred hours after the Ghana Armed Forces reported that an Air Force chopper carrying three crew members and five passengers had gone off radar shortly after departing from Accra en route to Obuasi, a town northwest of the capital.
“The president and government extend our condolences and sympathies to the families of our comrades and the servicemen who died in service to the country,” said Chief of Staff Julius Debrah.
Among the deceased were Alhaji Muniru Mohammed, Ghana’s deputy national security coordinator and former minister of agriculture, and Samuel Sarpong, vice chairman of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC).
The crash comes at a critical time in Ghana’s national security landscape. Boamah, a medical doctor by training and a seasoned public official, had recently been appointed by President John Mahama in January 2025 to lead the Ministry of Defence amid growing regional instability.
His appointment came as Ghana ramped up its border security in response to jihadist violence spilling over from neighbouring Burkina Faso.
Although Ghana has so far remained untouched by direct insurgent attacks—unlike neighbours Togo and Benin—security analysts have long warned of the risk posed by arms trafficking and militant movements across the country’s porous northern borders.
Boamah was a familiar face in Ghana’s political landscape, having previously served as communications minister and deputy minister for environment during Mahama’s earlier administration from 2012 to 2017.
He was also recently involved in sensitive diplomatic engagements, including leading a delegation to Ouagadougou in May to strengthen ties with Burkina Faso’s military-led government amid tensions within the ECOWAS bloc.
Environment Minister Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, another prominent figure in the NDC, had been spearheading Ghana’s push for environmental reform and scientific innovation. His sudden death marks a significant loss for the government’s sustainability agenda.
The Ghanaian presidency announced that all national flags will be flown at half-staff in honour of the victims, and President Mahama has suspended all official engagements for the day.
Boamah had been preparing for the launch of a new book titled “A Peaceful Man in an African Democracy”, a tribute to former President John Atta Mills, who passed away in office in 2012.
