This old Soldier: Jerry Rawlings

By Denrele Animasaun

‘Until the average Ghanaian recognises the need to show responsibility first to himself, his family, his environment and his community, we will continue to experience economic, social and political poverty’- Jerry John Rawlings

The man, the myth and the legend  that was Jerry John Rawlings has taken his leave off this mortal coil and his departure took many people across the globe by surprise.  I had to check several sources to verify that this news was not fake. It was not. They say, old soldiers never die, that they just fade away. That was not true with Jerry Rawlings.  He was always a man of action even at the age of 73, always leading from the front; some say he was the king maker, he had the influence in politics at the same time, very active and visible in social media, there was news about when he got out of his car and he directed traffic, he was receiving dignitaries in his office until his office was closed as a result of Covid.

Jerry Rawlings, the son of a Ghanaian father and a Scottish mother, he was no doubt 100 % Ghanaian and proud of it. Jerry Rawlings was a name that struck fear into many of his foes and admiration in equal measure from the ordinary Joe on the street. He was liked and loathed depending on who had benefited from the people’s revolution. Some may argue that he did transform and   rebuild the consciousness of Ghanaians, just as Nkrumah did.  I will not argue at all. Even in his advancing years, he cut a fine figure, he was a good looking man.

He felt he had an opinion that was worth a mention and he gave it, be it on police brutality in Nigeria and the End Sars protest or congratulating Biden and Harris on their election success.  This was not a man, who was going away. No, it was not. This old soldier that was feared and contributed in some part to the stability of Ghana, had become an elder statesman, he was enjoying the autumn of his years, he was a family man and up until September, when he lost his 101year old mother.  She was his backbone and he was bereft when she passed.

Do not let his beguiling appearance fool you, he came to power in bloody coups. Yes, not one, plural. This gentile and gregarious man led the cleansing of Ghana’s corrupt regime. It was not  pretty, in fact it was grizzly.  He was responsible for scores of politicians who were summarily executed for corruption. Jerry vehemently defended his integrity and honour he, was not responsible for the kidnappings or execution, that this were the work of hot headed junior officers that he had no control over them. Whatever the truth, we would never know.

“If you’re going to live, leave a legacy. Make a mark on the world that can’t be erased – Maya Angelou

On  May 15, 1979, one flight lieutenant led a group of junior Ghanaian army officers in an attempted overthrow of the military government of General F.K. Akuffo and the Supreme Military Council.

Rawlings urges Togo to uphold democratic principles

He founded—the National Democratic Congress and he morphed into a civilian head of state, and the country developed into a unified and prosperous country.

We know because we witnessed  the influx of Ghanaians flooding into Nigeria during the tumultuous times and going back home, after Rawlings’ ‘cleansing’.

The call was to Ghanaians to come and build their nation and in their droves, they did. It was argued that Rawlings’ revolution was not bloody as it was morally. It was raising awareness of Ghanaians and they became responsible for success of the nation. It was hard and millions left when the financial squeeze became unbearable.

He argued the only way for the country and its citizens; and reasserting national morality was the only productive way forward, he argued. These same moral arguments, however, were used to justify the executions in 1979 and the widely-condemned assassination of Supreme Court justices who had ruled against the People’s National Defence Council (PNDC) after Rawlings’ “second coming.” Rawlings and the PNDC further empowered Local Defence Committees (LDCs) to root out corruption at the community level. The result was a form of democratic authoritarianism to which all citizens were subject.