LATE JIRAPA MP INTERRED (PAGE 13)

THE mortal remains of the late Member of Parliament (MP) for the Jirapa Constituency in the Upper West Region, Edward Salia, was at the weekend interred at his home town at Chapuri, near Jirapa.
The remains which were flown in last Friday from Accra after a state funeral at the forecourt of the State House, was for the second time laid in state for a vigil at his hometown after which a special church service was held on Saturday before it was carried to the grave site, right in front of the house of the late MP.
As if it was a show of cars and motorcycles, the entire funeral premises was choked with a fleet of vehicles ranging from saloon cars to mummy trucks and motorcycles, carrying mourners from all over the country to Chapuri.
As of about 9:45a.m. when the Daily Graphic arrived at the funeral grounds, the whole place was awashed with red or black while almost all the seats, with the exception of those reserved for the dignitaries were occupied.
The burial service also attracted hundreds of people from all walks of life, including a government delegation led by a member of the Council of State, Alhaji Mahama Iddrisu, ministers of state, members of parliament from the various political divide, parliamentary staff as well as national and regional political party executives.
There was business as usual as some food vendors, particularly those who dealt in alcoholic beverages, took advantage of the gathering to do brisk business. Some health workers also mounted a table under one of the canopies and offered medical care to people. Ambulances were also put on standby to cater for any eventualities.
Such was the thickness of the crowd that at a point the master of ceremony had to plead with people who could not find chairs to sit on to bear with the organisers of the funeral, saying “We have managed to transport all the chairs you can think of in the Upper West Region to the funeral ground so please bear with us”.
In a sermon, the Catholic Bishop of Wa, Most Rev Paul Bemile, reminded the people that life comes from God and that it must go back to God when the time came.
He said each individual must be another’s keeper because whatever we do we would one day have to give an account of our stewardship.
He urged people to emulate the good human relation, hardwork and generosity of the late Edward Salia, adding that we must as well avoid selfishness.
Describing the late MP as a little humble mover, most Rev Bemile said because of the humility of Edward Salia he had been able to move almost the whole country to Chapuri.
The government later donated GH¢5000 and drinks to the bereaved family.
There were other donations from Parliament, political parties, institutions and individuals.