Executive Director of Centre for Public Opinion and Awareness (CenPOA), believes the military’s communication following a recent helicopter crash could have been handled better.
During an interview on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM’s Frontline, Michael Donyina Mensah pointed out that the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) initially released a statement saying the helicopter was merely “off the radar.” He found this puzzling, noting that by that time, the public was already well aware the helicopter had crashed. He suggested a more transparent and immediate statement would have been more appropriate.
The policy analyst also expressed disappointment with how the crash scene was managed.
”After the crash, the GAF’s communication and issue management were poor. Social media was controlling the narrative, and the GAF was falling behind. For example, at the time the GAF issued a press release stating they had lost contact with the aircraft, it was already widely reported on social media that the aircraft had crashed. The GAF’s statement was also very vague, failing to provide any details about their actions. The tone of their statement was political rather than informative.”
He lamented that security officials and the GAF failed to secure and preserve the site according to international protocols.
He stressed the importance of preserving a crash scene, explaining, “All over the world when planes crash, security teams move quickly to the crash sites, secure the crash site and preserve it for investigation. In most cases, the crash planes are reconstructed for investigative purposes.”
He went on to say that a proper investigation would address key questions, such as whether there was an explosion before the crash, and that such analysis is crucial for preventing future incidents. While he acknowledged that local residents may have rushed to the scene with good intentions to help, he said it was the responsibility of security personnel to immediately secure the area upon arrival.
Donyina Mensah concluded by reiterating his expectation that security officials would have preserved the site for a thorough investigation. “That was what I was expecting,” he said, “but our security officials allowed residents to remain there and take whatever they wanted from the site.”
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
