The Volta Region's Independence Day celebrations this year were dedicated to Etornam Gorni Attippoe, a 14-year-old boy who died ten years ago during a rehearsal for the 2012 Independence Day procession.
On Monday, February 27th, 2012, Ho Fiave, a JHS 1 student at the Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Church Junior High School, fell during a practice for the day's independence parade.
On arriving at the Volta Regional Hospital, which is now Ho Teaching Hospital, she was pronounced dead.
Monument and citation
The Volta Regional Coordinating Council, represented by the Regional Minister, Regional Education Director, and Ho Municipal Chief Executive, handed a citation to the parents of Corporal Patrick Attipoe, a descendant of a national hero.
He was one of three veteran troops who died in 1948 at the Christiansburg Castel, Osu, while delivering a petition for their due after WWII. The incident is also remembered as one of the turning points in Ghana's independence from the United Kingdom in 1957.
A sod was also cut to begin the construction of a memorial in memory of young Etornam Gorni, who was born on September 30, 1998, to Atsu and Charity Gorni of Gorni Korpe in the Akatsi South Municipality.
Dr. Archibald Yao Letsa, the Volta Regional Minister, read a citation honoring Etornam, describing her as a national hero who sacrificed herself so that many pupils might have a better independence parade experience.
"As we commemorate Ghana's 65th independence anniversary and pay tribute to fallen heroes, we also remember you," the citation reads in part. By human terms, she isn't a heroic, but she is spiritual... We are proud to consider you worthy of our respect and esteem, Etornam. By far the youngest person to die in the line of duty... The price you paid has had a significant impact on how Ghanaian independence parades are staged today. As a result, on this particular day, your fellow pupils receive extra attention and preferred treatment."
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