“Your Passing Has Left an Emptiness Nothing Can Ever Fill” – Widow of Samuel Aboagye Pays Emotional Tribute

By Joylinda Laryea / 15 August , 2025

Abigail Salami, wife of the late Samuel Aboagye, former parliamentary candidate for Obuasi East, delivered a heartfelt and emotional tribute during the burial ceremony for six of the eight victims of the August 6 military helicopter crash.

Speaking at the interdenominational state funeral held on Friday at Black Star Square and later at the Military Cemetery in Tse Addo, she described the loss of her husband as a wound too deep for words.

“No words could ever capture the depth of my pain and the weight of this loss,” she said. “Your passing has left an emptiness that nothing in this world could ever fill. Yet even through the tears…”

Her tribute painted a picture of a loving husband and dedicated public servant whose sudden death has shaken not just his family, but his entire community.

Samuel Aboagye was among eight individuals who died when a Ghana Air Force Z-9 helicopter crashed at Adansi Akrofuom in the Ashanti Region while en route to the launch of the Responsible Community and Cooperative Mining Programme in Obuasi.

The victims included:

• Dr. Edward Omane Boamah, Minister for Defence

• Dr. Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed, Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation

• Samuel Aboagye, former Obuasi East parliamentary candidate

• Dr. Samuel Sarpong, NDC Vice Chairman

• Alhaji Limuna Muniru Mohammed, Acting Deputy National Security Coordinator

• Squadron Leader Peter Bafemi Anala

• Flying Officer Manin Twum-Ampadu

• Sergeant Ernest Addo Mensah

Two of the victims  Dr. Ibrahim Murtala Mohammed and Alhaji Limuna Muniru Mohammed were buried on August 10, with the remaining six laid to rest on August 15 with full military honours.

The ceremony drew President John Dramani Mahama, Vice President Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin, and other dignitaries who joined families and citizens in mourning the national tragedy.