Author: Peter Martey Agbeko
Forty-five years ago today — on Friday, December 5, 1980 — what should have been a joyous celebration for St. Augustine’s College (Augusco) turned into a haunting nightmare. On that Golden Jubilee day in Cape Coast, a procession of students — young, hopeful, united — was struck by a speeding vehicle weaving recklessly through the march. The result was catastrophic.
As an APSUnian, a former Augusco student (APSU ’80) who knew most of those young men personally, I write this with a heavy heart — and with a deep conviction that their memory must endure.
A celebration turned tragedy
The 50th-anniversary celebrations of Augusco were meant to unite old boys, current students, staff, and well-wishers. The procession — proud, disciplined, full of youthful energy — was more than symbolic; it represented decades of tradition, faith, brotherhood and hope.
But as the march wound its way through the streets of Cape Coast that night, a man identified as Mr. Samuel Sagoe-Nkansah (often referred to simply as “Nkansah”) attempted to force his way through the procession. When cadet corps members blocked him, he disappeared — only to return moments later in a car, speeding into the procession and mowing down students in a terrifying wave of violence.
In that instant, joy turned to screams, cheers to chaos, celebration to blood and grief.
The toll — death, injury and enduring scars
Among the students, two names remain painfully etched in our collective sorrow.
Emmanuel Sam — known affectionately as “Awichiway” — a Form Five student, died on the spot that night.
And alongside him, another bright young Augustinian, Peter Ankamah, a Lower Six former, also lost his life in the same tragic incident.
Their deaths shook the entire Augusco community to its core.
Many others suffered grievous injuries. Brothers such as Anthony Yankson (my good friend and a member of St. George’s House), Isaac Danso (aka “Strange Man”), Turkson and William Dawson-Coker were among those rushed to the Cape Coast Central Hospital for emergency treatment.
Others — like Charles Bobson (Koobobby) and Emmanuel Armah — were also injured, treated, and later discharged.
News of the tragedy tore through the campus: from the heady optimism of a jubilee parade to the bitter reality that young lives had been lost, and many more forever changed.
Courage in chaos: alumni doctors to the rescue
In those hours of panic and bloodshed, it was not just students who rallied. Old boys — alumni doctors among them — stepped in, offering their hands, their skills, and their resolve. They helped save lives.
One man stands out: Dr. John Baptist Wilson (APSU ’57). According to the organisers of a forthcoming film on the tragedy, his efforts that night were critical. There is even a video clip circulating online in which he recounts what he did — a somber reminder of duty, compassion, and brotherhood when darkness fell.
Their intervention, swift and selfless, saved lives that would otherwise have been lost.
Why we remember — and why we must never forget
Today, exactly 45 years later, we honour those we lost — Emmanuel Sam (Awichiway) and Peter Ankamah — and we salute all those who survived but continue to bear the scars of that night.
We pray for eternal rest for these two beloved sons of Augusco, and for continued healing for every survivor and witness of that act of reckless violence.
But remembrance alone is not enough.
There is now a project in motion to immortalise the memory of that night — a film under the working title “The Day the Music Stopped.” The project is being led by the overseas wing of the St. Augustine’s Past Students Union (APSU USA), with a screenplay by Ray Felix Tettey-Tuvi (APSU ’87) and direction by celebrated filmmaker Ambrose Bubi Cooke (APSU ’93).
The aim is simple yet profound:
to tell the story truthfully, to preserve it for posterity, and to ensure that future generations of Augustinians — and Ghanaians — never forget.
Alongside the film, there is a renewed call for a permanent monument to be erected in honour of the victims — a visible, enduring symbol of loss, sacrifice, resilience, and the lessons we must never unlearn.
45 years on: moving forward with memory
Today, December 5, 2025, as we pause to reflect on the 45 years since that tragic Golden Jubilee procession, we call on old boys, current students, staff, well-wishers, and all Ghanaians who cherish youth, discipline and the sanctity of life:
Let us rally behind the film project — support its funding and share its story.
Let us support the call for a monument — a permanent marker of remembrance.
Let us honour and pray for the souls of Emmanuel Sam (“Awichiway”) and Peter Ankamah, and all those injured or traumatised on that night.
Let us recommit to protecting the dignity, safety and future of our youth.
Because that day was not a mere tragic footnote in our history.
It was — and remains — a warning, a memory, and a call to conscience.
May we remember. May we reflect.
And above all, may we act — so that such a night never again darkens our community.
