A former Bayport Savings and Loans employee, Isaac Aboagye Mensah, who once worked at Adum-Kumasi in Ghana, has reportedly died of shock in Ukraine after enlisting in the Russian army. Isaac, who left his banking career, allegedly succumbed to the horrors of war on the battlefield.
According to social media user @eddie_wrt on X (formerly Twitter), Isaac initially traveled to Qatar during the 2022 World Cup before returning to Ghana. Later, he moved to Russia and informed his family of his decision to join the Russian military alongside other Ghanaians.
Isaac remained in contact with his family through WhatsApp until communication abruptly ceased. A Ghanaian colleague in Isaac’s unit eventually informed the family that Isaac had died from shock after witnessing the brutal realities of war and had been buried.
However, for the past seven months, Isaac’s family has not heard from him and remains skeptical about his supposed death, as they have not seen his remains. They are seeking help from authorities to confirm the information.
Screenshots attached to @eddie_wrt’s account on X include posts from Isaac’s purported Facebook page and a WhatsApp voice note in which a voice, allegedly Isaac’s, mentions an injury while preparing for training.
There has been no official confirmation or denial of these claims from Isaac’s family.
Isaac had written in one of his posts dated December 11, 2023 “The once corporate worker (Banker) has now transmogrified into a chionophile. Eeeeiiii abrab) paaa nie?? Aaah well, that’s what Nana Akufo Addo’s government would do to some of us. Nonetheless, that doesn’t connote a plus one (+1) vote for the NDC wae. Sorry to disappoint you.”
Words that suggest that economic hardship in Ghana may have driven him to take this drastic step, underscoring the severe challenges faced by many Africans who risk their lives in foreign wars.
The history of Russia‘s empire has a big influence in Moscow. The walls and towers of the Kremlin are so big that when visitors see them from Red Square, they feel very small.
When I go to Victory Park, which is five miles away, I feel the same way. It is a big place with museums and memorials made to remember when the Soviet Union won against Nazi Germany. The main attraction is a big square with a tall obelisk that is 141. 8mIt represents each day of the Great Patriotic War, which was the Soviet Union’s involvement in World War Two after the Nazi invasion.
When I go there, it’s the day when Russians celebrate their flag. A really big flag, said to be the biggest in the country, is being raised on the square.
Surrounded by strict rows of Russian soldiers, the flag is unfolded while a military band plays songs that make people feel proud of their country. The person in charge of the museum gives a talk, emphasizing that these events bring our community together.
The Russian government has been promoting events that celebrate their country and show pride in it more often since they invaded Ukraine.
Inside the Victory Museum, there is a special exhibit dedicated to the heroic individuals involved in a specific military mission. Information boards are comparing the Russian soldiers who are currently fighting in Ukraine to the Soviet soldiers who fought in World War II.
Andrei Afanasiev, a blogger who supports the government of Russia and teaches at a university, agrees to meet with me. He says that loving one’s country is very important during times of war. He believes that the conflict between the West and Russia has made Russians realize that they can only rely on themselves.
“You can trust only yourself, your country, and your military. ” Certainly, people are more patriotic now than they used to be. “War brings us together and inspires us,” he says.
I ask Andrei if he thinks the war is going poorly for Russia. “He disagrees,” he answers. I think Russia will be successful. We are prepared to win.
On Russian television, they talk about “successes” and “progress,” but the truth is not the same.
The Russian military knows they are in a big problem. According to a unnamed Russian military analyst, they lost land and their morale is really low.
They’re not ready for modern battles. The amount of money being lost is very high.
Did the president tell the truth about the actual situation on the battlefield. No, he says. People at all levels of authority are telling lies. As information spreads, it gets more and more twisted.
The analyst says that Russian officers in Ukraine are feeling anxious because they are barely managing to hold on as Kyiv launches its own attack.
Not only the Russian military is worried. The overall feeling I experience in Moscow is that people are generally feeling anxious or on edge. And there are many things to be concerned about.
In June, Yevgeny Prigozhin started a rebellion and walked towards the main city. The head of the Wagner mercenary group was said to have died in a strange plane accident, which caused people to accuse the Russian government of being involved.
Earlier this month, the value of the rouble dropped significantly. Furthermore, there are frequent drone attacks happening in Moscow almost every day.
Although Russians don’t seem to be worried about these events on their own, many are concerned about the present and afraid of what may happen in the future.
In Gorky Park, which is like Moscow’s version of Hyde Park in London, there is a very peaceful and beautiful setting. Families can be seen walking along the riverside and enjoying activities like rollerblading. On the other hand, there is a big gray building called the Russian Defence Ministry. It has a system to shoot down planes that might attack.
It’s very different to see a surface-to-air missile system beside a beautiful park.
Svyatoslav says that he is not concerned about the air-defence system. Let them place a powerful weapon there if it makes them feel safer. I like what’s happening and we should take over all of Ukraine.
A woman named Irina also says she is not very bothered by the missiles in the middle of Russia’s capital. My feelings are steady, and my mind has gotten used to the situation. I am not as worried as I was before. But I believe that everything will get better and be resolved positively.
Pavel and his wife Olga are taking a walk together. They have different opinions on the war in Ukraine: Olga thinks the Kremlin is right and thinks Ukraine is responsible, but her husband believes it’s Russia’s fault.
Pavel confesses that he is concerned about the drones falling in Moscow. But we agreed not to discuss politics, so that we can avoid arguing and annoying each other.
Many people don’t want to think about what is happening in cities and towns in Ukraine that are less than a day’s drive away.
Not many people in Moscow seem to be feeling excited or enthusiastic about going to war, even though Andrei Afanasiev says otherwise. Not many people wear clothing with the letter Z or other symbols of Russia’s war while walking on the streets. Among many people, there is a lack of interest, a feeling of giving up, or a quiet acceptance.
Many people in positions of authority feel the same way, including someone close to the Kremlin who is talking to me secretly.
People working in the Presidential Administration are either feeling oppressed or sad. They have been working there for a long time and have not gained any other experience. They don’t feel good about what’s coming ahead, but they don’t resist it and just follow along. The source says that there is not another option.
He says that people are scared to talk because there is no one opposing Putin in the government building called the Kremlin.
People in Moscow are very scared right now. In a little room hidden on the highest floor of a shopping center, a gathering of people who disagree with the current situation is happening. They have set up a table with cookies, drinks, and small bites.
Yulia Galyamina, a local politician, is in charge of the meeting. She is one of the very few opposition figures in Russia who have not been sent to jail or forced to leave the country.
“She says that someone different gets arrested every week. ” I am always prepared for someone to knock on the door. I am lonely, but I believe I am doing the correct thing. My people need politicians in their country.
Some of the activists do not want to use their real names.
Yulia, who is an anti-war activist, considers herself fortunate to not be in jail at this point.
I want to know what message she wants to give to people in the West who believe that all Russians are in favor of the war.
“I want to mention that there are many people here who are against war and actively work to promote peace. Despite this, I believe that humanity will ultimately succeed. ” We are in a battle and we will try our hardest.
Ma, a prominent figure in Taiwan’s opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party, will visit mainland China between March 27 and April 7, according to a statement released by his foundation on Sunday.
According to the foundation, he will pay respects to his ancestors in the southwest Hunan Province and head a group of Taiwanese students who will meet with counterparts from mainland China in several locations.
While the trip is ostensibly a private one it is filled with historic symbolism and comes at a time of deepening tensions over the future of Taiwan.
China’s ruling Communist Party has never controlled Taiwan but claims the self-ruled island democracy as its own and has repeatedly refused to rule out taking it by force.
At the end of the Chinese Civil War, Mao Zedong’s Communist Party took control of mainland China while the Kuomintang under Chiang Kai-shek fled to Taiwan– with both sides claiming to be the legitimate representative of China in the following decades, until Taiwan’s transition into a democracy in the 1990s.
But more recent decades saw increasingly ties warm between Beijing and the KMT, a rapprochement that reached its peak during Ma’s administration.
Ma served as Taiwan’s president between 2008 and 2016 during which he drew stronger economic ties between China and the democratically ruled island but kept Beijing’s push for reunification at bay.
His perceived closeness to Beijing, particularly on the economic front, sparked protests and a major voter backlash.
The KMT have lost the last two elections to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which is much more skeptical toward Beijing and rejects the tacit understanding that both sides acknowledge they belong to “one China,” but with different interpretations of what that entails.
China’s leader Xi Jinping has ramped up economic, diplomatic and military pressure on Taiwan ever since the DPP took power in 2016.
Ma’s historic trip is taking place against that febrile geopolitical backdrop and comes as Taiwan and the United States ramp up efforts to counter China’s growing military capabilities.
His trip will also come at a politically sensitive time. Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen will soon make a stopover in the US en route to diplomatic allies in Latin America, an official with Taiwan’s Overseas Community Affairs Council told lawmakers earlier this month. US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy also said he plans to meet with her when she is in the US.
Taiwan is scheduled to hold its next presidential election in January next year. Tsai is not eligible for re-election.
Fears of a Chinese invasion have loomed over Taiwan for more than seven decades but they have been supercharged by both Xi’s increased assertiveness andRussia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The KMT has long rejected being characterized as a “pro-Beijing” party. But its leadership, including Ma, have often pushed the need to improve ties.
The KMT’s deputy chairman Andrew Hsia visited Beijing last month to meet with senior Communist Party leader Wang Huning.
In contrast, Beijing has severed official communication with Taiwan’s Tsai-led government.
In 2015, Ma and Xi held a historic face-to-face meeting in Singapore – the first meeting between leaders of the Kuomintang and Chinese Communist Party since the end of the Chinese Civil War, although not on either side of the strait.
Ma’s foundation said a meeting between Xi and Ma is not currently being planned for the trip.
Taiwan’s presidential office said in a statement Sunday that Ma will be required to report details of his itinerary to the government before and after his visit to China.
