The former President of Ghana, Jerry Rawlings has died from Covid-19 at the age 73. The man believed to have introduced good governance, died in hospital in the capital, Accra, on Thursday November 12, 2020
Though he had been criticized for seizing power and executing several heads of state, many still hailed him for relentlessly fighting against corruption and mismanagement.
He was also seen as a champion of the poor, as he fought to make sure that the rich do not keep on being rich through corruption and embezzlement.
Though he seized power twice, Ghanaians still considered him as a hero. He founded a major ruling party in Ghana, the National Democratic Congress (NDC), and became the first president of the 4th Republic, serving two terms as the democratically elected leader from January of 1993 to January of 2001. He is the one who introduced multiparty politics and hence the “father of democracy.
It is for his good works in Ghana that a week of national mourning has been announced for the country’s longest-serving leader, who oversaw the transition to multiparty elections and is often viewed as the man behind one of Africa’s most democratic nations.
As Ghana prepares for its presidential election on December 7, current President Nana Akufo-Addo and opposition leader John Mahama both announced a suspension of all campaigning across the country.
Rawlings was born in Accra in June 1947, to a Ghanaian mother and a Scottish father.
He came to global prominence in 1979 when, as an army lieutenant, he ousted General Frederick Akuffo as president.
Rawlings relinquished power soon after, handing over to civilian rule, but orchestrated another coup two years later, citing corruption and weak leadership.
From 1981 to 1993, Rawlings ruled as chairman of a joint military-civilian government. In 1992 he was elected president under a new constitution, fully assuming the role the following year.
He served two terms before being succeeded by John Kufour in 2001.
