Nana Kobina Nketsia V, the Paramount Chief of Essikado Traditional Area, in the Western Region, has called on the leadership of the Ghana Navy to preserve the history of the Ghana Navy Ship (GNS) Yogaga for its role in the quest for regional and global peace.
He made the call when he delivered a keynote lecture at the Ghana Navy Memorial Day celebration and 35th Anniversary of the bombing of the Ghana Navy Ship (GNS) Yogaga in Liberia, in September 1990.
The lecture, held at Essipong in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis was on the theme: “Sacrifice, Service and Sovereignty: Legacy of the Ghana Navy.”
In an attempt to end the civil war in Liberia, a group of West African nations under the auspices of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) took steps to send a peacekeeping force to Monrovia, in August 1990.
The Task Force was known as the ECOWAS Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) with troops drawn from Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra-Leone, Gambia, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Niger.
The Ghana Armed Forces provided the first Force Commander, General Arnold Quainoo and contributed two ships from the Ghana Navy, namely; GNS Achimota and GNS Yogaga.
On September 14, 1990 a Ghanaian delegation visited the troops in Liberia and when they were scheduled to sail back with GNS Yogaga, the ship was requested to evacuate casualties from the battlefield to the 34 Military Hospital in Sierra-Leone.
Just as the casualties were being brought onboard the ship, it was bombed by a faction involved in the civil war, killing three crew members on the spot, with another dying, enroute to Freetown.
In all, fifteen ECOMOG personnel lost their lives and about 25 were also wounded.
In that regard, Nana Nketsia V stated that the sacrifice and services of those who lost their lives for peace should be an inspiration and serve, as a guiding principle for both current and future generations of personnel.
He said: “I will urge the Navy to try to get a book on Yogaga, if possible, so that we will preserve this in our national and African interests to awaken some of us from what I call historical amnesia.”
Rear Admiral Godwin Livinus Bessing, the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), said the Ghana Navy has had its share of trying times and the fatal incident that happened in Liberia in September 1990 was one of them.
According to him, the memorial lectures sought to highlight the contributions of the Navy’s forebears and provide a unique opportunity to connect the younger generation to veterans who lived through those trying times.
He said the Ghana Navy, from its humble beginning as a colonial naval volunteer force, to its contributions to peacekeeping and maritime security, had stood as a pillar in sovereignty and national stability.
“The men and women we remember today gave their all not for personal gains, but for the greater good of our country and for peace in our sub-region and beyond,” Rear Admiral Bessing added.
The event was attended by high-ranking military officers, retired senior naval officers and ratings, surviving crew members of the GNS Yogaga, families of the fallen, traditional leaders and students among others.
From Emmanuel Gamson
GNA
