The Minority in Parliament has demanded that the government provides a full update on investigations into the fatal El Wak Stadium stampede, which claimed multiple lives during a recruitment exercise for job seekers.
Speaking at a press conference in Accra on January 8, the Deputy Minority Leader Patricia Appiagyei said Ghanaians have a right to know exactly what went wrong, who is being held accountable, and what measures are being implemented to prevent a recurrence.
“Citizens deserve transparency and accountability. No young person should die simply for seeking the dignity of work,” the Minority said, describing the tragedy as a preventable consequence of mismanagement and unsafe recruitment practices.
The opposition also highlighted and linked the stampede to the broader context of rising unemployment and politically influenced dismissals, noting that thousands of public servants—including teachers, nurses, and administrators—have been dismissed since January 2025, leaving many households in hardship and intensifying desperation among job seekers.
“The government must provide a full report, hold responsible officials accountable, and implement measures to ensure no such tragedy happens again,” the Minority added, stressing that Ghanaians deserve nothing less than complete transparency and decisive action.
Touching the operations of the GoldBod, the Minority again urged lawmakers to establish a bipartisan committee to conduct a thorough investigation into the controversial Gold for Reserves programme following claims that the country recorded a US $214 million loss under the initiative.
The Minority said Ghanaian citizens deserve full transparency on all contracts, pricing formulas, and financial data connected to the programme—insisting that Parliament has a constitutional duty to probe what the government has so far treated as a policy matter.
“We will demand parliamentary investigations. We will not relent in demanding accountability,” the Minority said, stressing that such scrutiny is necessary “not until Ghana is set on a truly sustainable, just, and transparent path.”
The call comes amid continuing public discussion about the programme’s performance, particularly after an International Monetary Fund (IMF) report referenced an estimated US $214 million trade loss recorded by the Bank of Ghana under the Gold for Reserves initiative. Critics have questioned how the programme’s mechanics and pricing structures were managed within the broader strategy to bolster forex reserves and currency stability.
Government linked institutions, especially the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), have disputed claims that the board itself incurred losses, saying instead that GoldBod generated a surplus and that the IMF figure relates to accounting treatments on the Bank of Ghana’s books.
In its statement, the Minority linked the call for investigation to broader governance concerns, including demands for real accountability, stronger judicial independence, and protections for anti-corruption institutions.
“The people of Ghana deserve clarity on how their resources are being managed and whether any misconduct occurred,” the Minority said, repeating its demand for full disclosure and accountability from all entities involved.
