Ghanaians turn to radio, TV for late President’s funeral
Many Ghanaians who could not visit the State House on Wednesday spent their time either listening to radio or watching television to keep in touch with proceedings of the late President John Evans Atta Mills’ funeral.
A tour through some principal streets at Adabraka, Kwame Nkrumah Circle, Odawna, Makola, Laterbiokorshie and around the Ministries in Accra by the Ghana News Agency revealed that many had turned their electronic gadgets to keep up with the three-day State funeral which got underway on Wednesday morning.
The atmosphere around the Ministries and some principal streets in Accra was generally sober with pockets of loud music blurring from some speakers mounted at vantage points at Makola and Circle.
Mathematically speaking, people who were spotted clad in black and red mourning cloth with red bands and scarves numbered 1:2.
Others had the late President Mills’ portrait either pined to their clothes or were wearing a T-shirt with his picture or name printed in it.
Still others carried decorative medals with late President Mills’ portrait hanging around their neck.
Some chose to play dirges and sorrowful songs either composed by Ghanaian musicians to eulogise the deceased or melodies already made to mourn the dead.
Meanwhile economic activities were being carried out as normal with some traders selling black and red bands and other funeral paraphernalia.
The mortal remains of the late President Mills, in a casket draped in the national colours of red, yellow and green with a black star in the middle of the yellow, arrived at the State House for public viewing at 09:27.
The body arrived after it was taken from the 37 Military Hospital mortuary at about 6:50 hours and driven to his private residence on the Spintex Road and then to the Castle where he had worked from January 7, 2009 until his sudden death on Tuesday, July 24, 2012.
Scores of people, including government functionaries, Members of the Council of State, clergy, senior military officers, security chiefs, traditional rulers and top members of the society, gathered in front of the Banquet Hall of the State House to view the mortal remains of the late President Mills.
Source: GNA