Sam Nartey George, the minister of Communications, Digital Technology and Innovation, has revealed he was faced with the option of shutting down the internet to prevent the further spread of the tragic helicopter crash videos on August 6.
Sam George noted that he got a call that disturbing videos were being circulated, with the government yet to formally complete its communications to the families of the bereaved.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, Sam George revealed, “When it comes to the coverage of the tragedy, I’d say that it’s been a mixed part for me, and let me say a very big thank you to the telecom companies – MTN, Telecel, and AirtelTigo, Ghana”.
“When the incident happened, I was distraught, but we still had a responsibility to the state. I got a call with the videos that started circulating. The unfortunate situation is that most of them were circulating on WhatsApp, and WhatsApp is a platform that is not controlled by any country. It’s a private business,” he explained.
He added, “I was faced as Minister of Communication with two options, one was to shut down the internet in the country to prevent further spread of the videos, because government had not officially completed communication to the families. Government had not made a formal communication.
You had some of the kids who are old enough being online. I was worried about the mental health of those kids and their spouses, and such a tragedy needs to be broken in a certain way”.
Sam George, however, noted that the shutdown will have had its own consequences.
He added, “That was one option—to shut down, make a public announcement and say we’re turning off the internet for a period to allow for calm to prevail and have a grip of everything before we allow. But then that also came with its own consequences”.
Many of you stream the news, how people get the news via stream and all of that. You could have a ripple effect that would actually be worse than what you were trying to fix. And so, we had to leave that intact.”
The sector minister on Joy Super Morning Show revealed he opted for a behind-the-scenes effort by reaching out to Meta and activating a POC.
Sam George further narrated, “I immediately reached out to Meta and activated a POC that we had there to see what Meta could do, because Meta controls the WhatsApp platform. Then I started making personal calls to senior vice presidents that I knew at Meta to see what could be done. They assured me they were going to look into the matter.”
“Then I reached out to the NCA and asked them to get in touch with all the CEOs. I personally placed calls to the three CEOs and said they should work with the NCA. We sent out about 30 million text messages within the space of two hours, and the telecom companies bore the cost for this,” he said.
Sam George further revealed that all messages sent from the Ministry of Communications were funded by the telecom operators.
“All those messages that went out from the MOCDTI asking people to please exercise restraint, the cost was borne by the telecom companies themselves as part of working with us. The NCA coordinated the blast of the messages across the country,” Sam George added.
Meanwhile, the tragic helicopter crash at Adansi Akrofuom District of the Ashanti Region on Wednesday, August 6, claimed the lives of eight Ghanaians, including Dr Omane Boamah and Dr Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed, two cabinet members.
The helicopter was carrying eight individuals, including three crew members and five passengers, among them the ministers, a presidential staffer identified as Samuel Sarpong, and the ministers’ security detail.
Muniru Mohammed, Acting Deputy National Security Coordinator, and Samuel Aboagye, a former Parliamentary Candidate, and Samuel Sarpong, Vice Chairman of NDC, have all been confirmed dead.
The crew members are Squadron Leader Peter Bafemi Anala, Flying Officer Manin Twum-Ampadu, and Sergeant Ernest Addo Mensah.
Watch the video below:
"I was faced with the option of shutting down the internet briefly to stop the spread of the videos of the tragedy online."
— Joy 99.7 FM (@Joy997FM) August 12, 2025
– @samgeorgegh #JoySMS pic.twitter.com/okKBrOidHF