 has urged the media to exercise restraint and accuracy in their commentary on the recent Air Force Z-9){kind=link}
The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) has urged the media to exercise restraint and accuracy in their commentary on the recent Air Force Z-9 helicopter crash in the Ashanti Region.
GAF is calling on media practitioners, commentators, bloggers, and content creators not to draw conclusions based on opinion, perceptions.
According to GAF, premature conclusions risk misleading the public, but also deepen the pain of the bereaved families.
Captain VA Arhin, Acting Director General of Public Relations, in a statement wrote, “For the sake of the bereaved families and loved ones, the Armed Forces urge media practitioners, panelists, social commentators, bloggers, and content creators to be circumspect in their reportage as a way of according respect to the memories of the fallen heroes and to mitigate the sorrows of the bereaved families”.
“At this point in time, any purported conclusions based on opinion, perceptions, and conjectures will be premature and misleading. The public is therefore advised to be wary of such reportage,” the statement emphasised.
The statement concluded, “May the souls of our patriots continue to rest in peace”.
Meanwhile, Comfort Doyoe Cudjoe Ghansah, the Deputy Majority Chief Whip, has alleged that available evidence implies the GAF Z-9 helicopter was blasted mid-air.
According to the deputy Majority Whip, the retrieval of the black box will let Ghanaians know what really caused the aircraft to blast before coming down.
Speaking on OKAY FM, Comfort Doyoe Cudjoe Ghansah stated, “The aircraft exploded; it did not crash. Let me tell you something: with all the crashes that have happened in the past, we see that the aircraft lands at a specific location. You would usually find it at a given location where the victims can all be found”.
But in this instance, the parts of the helicopter were scattered, and the victims were found at separate locations. In an aircraft where one is in a seatbelt, how did the victims end up scattered? We are told some of them were found in a deep valley. So, the aircraft blasted before reaching the ground,” she added.
The Deputy Majority Whip added, “We thank God that the black box has been found. Whatever the details are, the government should make them available because we are all interested parties. We want to know what happened that caused the aircraft to blast before coming down”.
Also, Hamza Suhuyini Sayibu, a member of the NDC Communications Team, has criticised GAF over its response to disasters and security.
Speaking on TV3 New Day on Tuesday, August 12, 2025, Hamza Suhuyini stated, “I am in pain. I have struggled because of this, and the pain is yet to leave my chest. I was thinking that the grief that has engulfed our state institutions, excluded the military due to their conduct”.
“For hours, after the Ghana military issued a statement about the missing helicopter and the news about the discovery, it had to take civilians to be seen actively on the site of the crash, trying to salvage the situation,” he added.
“They could not dignify their gallant service by even taking charge of the remains of our fallen heroes and conducting it as a military duty. What I witnessed, I never thought in my lifetime I would have witnessed that level of inefficiency,” he stated.
Hamza Suhuyini Sayibu further questioned, “There is a military base in Kumasi. Where was our military? The defence minister of Ghana?”
“It is not just about the death of these people. It also sends a signal internationally about the reputation of the Ghana Army. This conduct has exposed the country badly,” he said.