42 Facts About Jerry Rawlings

Jerry Rawlings led a military junta until 1993 and then served two terms as the democratically elected president of Ghana.

Jerry Rawlings was the longest-serving leader in Ghana's history, presiding over the country for 19 years.

In 1992, Jerry Rawlings resigned from the military, founded the National Democratic Congress, and became the first president of the Fourth Republic.

Jerry Rawlings brokered a ceasefire in 1995 during the First Liberian Civil War.

Jerry Rawlings was re-elected in 1996 for four more years.

Jerry Rawlings died in 2020 at age 73 and was accorded a state funeral.

Jerry Rawlings is seen as a transformative leader in the history of Ghana, and is credited with leading the country through economic recovery and returning national pride to the country, along with turning Ghana into a multi-party democracy.

Jerry Rawlings has been described as one of Ghana's greatest leaders, and as the "transcendent African political figure of his generation".

Jerry Rawlings attended Achimota School and a military academy at Teshie.

Jerry Rawlings was married to Nana Konadu Agyeman, whom he met while at Achimota College.

Jerry Rawlings finished his secondary education at Achimota College in 1967.

Jerry Rawlings joined the Ghana Air Force shortly afterwards; on his application, the military switched his surname John and his middle name Rawlings.

Jerry Rawlings graduated in January 1969 and was commissioned as a pilot officer, winning the coveted "Speed Bird Trophy" as the best cadet in flying the Su-7 ground attack supersonic jet aircraft as he was skilled in aerobatics.

Jerry Rawlings earned the rank of flight lieutenant in April 1978.

Jerry Rawlings was thus regarded with some unease by the SMC.

Jerry Rawlings grew discontented with Ignatius Kutu Acheampong's government, which had come to power through a coup in January 1972.

Jerry Rawlings was part of the Free Africa Movement, an underground movement of military officers who wanted to unify Africa through a series of coups.

Jerry Rawlings was publicly sentenced to death in a General Court Martial and imprisoned, although his statements on the social injustices that motivated his actions won him civilian sympathy.

Shortly afterwards, Jerry Rawlings established and became the Chairman of a 15-member Armed Forces Revolutionary Council, primarily composed of junior officers.

Jerry Rawlings later implemented a much wider "house-cleaning exercise" involving the killings and abduction of over 300 Ghanaians.

In place of Limann's People's National Party, Jerry Rawlings established the Provisional National Defence Council military junta as the official government.

Jerry Rawlings hosted state visits from "revolutionaries" from other countries, including Desi Bouterse, Daniel Ortega, and Sam Nujoma.

Jerry Rawlings established the National Commission on Democracy shortly after the 1982 coup, and employed it to survey civilian opinion and make recommendations that would facilitate the process of democratic transition.

Jerry Rawlings' victory was aided by the various party structures that were integrated into society during his rule, called the "organs of the revolution".

Jerry Rawlings held a monopoly over national media and was able to censor print and electronic media through a PNDC newspaper licensing decree, PNDC Law 221.

Jerry Rawlings himself began campaigning before the official unbanning of political parties and had access to state resources and was able to effectively meet all monetary demands required of a successful campaign.

Opposition parties objected to the election results, citing incidences of vote stuffing in regions where Jerry Rawlings was likely to lose and rural areas with scant populations, as well as a bloated voters' register and a partisan electoral commission.

Jerry Rawlings took office on Thursday, 7 January 1993, the same day that the new constitution came into effect, and the government became known as the Fourth Republic of Ghana.

Jerry Rawlings established the Economic Recovery Program suggested by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in 1982 due to the poor state of the economy after 18 months of attempting to govern it through administrative controls and mass mobilization.

Between 1992 and 1996, Jerry Rawlings eased control over the judiciary and civil society, allowing a more independent Supreme Court and the publication of independent newspapers.

The Great Alliance based their platform on ousting Jerry Rawlings, and attacked the incumbent government for its poor fiscal policies.

Results by district were similar to those in 1992, with the opposition winning the Ashanti Region and some constituencies in Eastern and Greater Accra, and Jerry Rawlings winning in his ethnic home, the Volta Region, and faring well in every other region.

Jerry Rawlings did not attempt to amend the document to allow him to run for a third term in 2000.

Jerry Rawlings retired in 2001 and was succeeded by John Kufuor, his main rival and opponent in 1996.

In November 2000, Jerry Rawlings was named the first International Year of Volunteers 2001 Eminent Person by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, attending various events and conferences to promote volunteerism.

In October 2010, Jerry Rawlings was named as the African Union envoy to Somalia.

Jerry Rawlings was especially interested in the Ghanaian origins of the Maroon people.

Jerry Rawlings delivered lectures at universities, including Oxford University in England.

Jerry Rawlings died on 12 November 2020 at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, a week after having been admitted for a "short term illness".

Jerry Rawlings's death came nearly two months after that of his mother, Victoria Agbotui, on 24 September 2020.

Jerry Rawlings's body was laid in state in the foyer of the Accra International Conference Centre from 25 to 26 January 2021.

President Nana Akufo-Addo proposed to the Governing Council of UDS to rename the institution after Jerry Rawlings, who used his US$50,000 Hunger Project prize as seed money to establish the university.