The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has made a personal donation of GH₵100,000 to the Appiatse Support Fund which was established by Government following the Appiatse explosion incident on January 20, 2022.
The donation was made on Thursday, January 27, 2022. By it, President Akufo-Addo becomes the first person to donate to the Fund.
At a short ceremony at Jubilee House where the donation was made, he said the incident was an unfortunate one which resulted in loss of life and property, injuries, and the destruction of the entire community. He said he was deeply saddened by the incident, and thus sent the Vice President, and other senior Government officials to commiserate with the people.
President Akufo-Addo expressed his deepest condolences to the bereaved families and wished the injured speedy recovery. He reaffirmed Government’s commitment to pay in full the medical bills of all the injured.
The President also said Government was committed to supporting the victims and rebuilding the community, and hence the establishment of the Fund. He said the donation was his personal donation, and that Government will support the Fund with the necessary resources to rebuild the community.
The President also said he has tasked the security agencies to conduct full and impartial investigations into the matter, and anyone found culpable will be made to face the law. He called on all well-meaning Ghanaians and foreigners, as well as corporate Ghana, to donate generously to the Fund to speed up the reconstruction of the community.
Receiving the donation, the Chairperson of the Appiatse Support Fund Committee, Dr. Joyce Aryee thanked the President for the generous gesture. She said she hoped that the donation by the President will encourage more people to donate to the Fund to support the victims and the reconstruction of the community.
Appiatse Support Fund
The fund was launched on Tuesday, January 25, 2022 at the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.
The sector Minister, Samuel Abu Jinapor, said the purpose of the fund is to among others, support the victims of the incident and reconstruct the Appiatse community.
Mr. Jinapor who doubles as the Member of Parliament for the Damongo Constituency, also inaugurated a five-member committee, chaired by a former Minister and Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, Rev. Dr. Joyce Aryee, to manage the fund.
The other members of the Committee are Tetrete Okuamoah Sakyi II, Omanhene of Wassa Amenfi Traditional Area; Mr. Philip Owiredu, Managing Director of Cal Bank; Dr. Antoinette Tsiboe-Darko, a Senior Lecturer at the University of Ghana; and Mr. Sulemanu Koney, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Mines.
The committee was charged to raise sufficient funds, and supervise its disbursement in accordance with the highest standards of integrity and transparency for the benefit of the Appiatse community.
The Minister later led a Government delegation to inspect the community to begin the process of reconstruction.
The Appiatse Support Fund was established following an explosion which occurred when a truck carrying explosives for mining was involved in a crash in the town.
13 have been confirmed dead from the explosion while hundreds have received various degrees of injuries and are currently on admission receiving treatment.
