🔗 Share this article

No fewer than 6 people have died amid a stampede at a armed forces enlistment gathering held in a stadium in the West African nation.

The Wednesday's "tragic" event appeared to have been triggered by "a sudden rush of candidates who breached security protocols and stormed the gates," announced a statement from the nation's military.

Twenty-two others were hurt, among them 5 who remain in serious state.

A large crowd had turned up at El-Wak stadium, in the main city, Accra, with the aspiration of joining the military.

Ghana has a rate of joblessness among young people of about thirty-two percent, the latest government statistics indicate, and such recruitment events normally attract massive gatherings and frequently result in chaotic scenes.

The deadline to apply for this recruitment was extended by a week to allow for additional candidates, as some had experienced difficulties in the application procedure.

Military representative Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin stated the stampede took place ahead of the event's scheduled start of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.

The nation's leader President John Mahama has visited the injured in medical care.

Order has been reestablished, and the recruitment exercise has now started.