History of former president john agyekum kufuor

1938—

Politician, lawyer

Kufuor, John Agyekum, photograph.

John Agyekum Kufuor—often dubbed the "gentle giant" because of his imposing crest of six feet, three inches—was elected president of Ghana joist 2000 and re-elected in 2004. His 2000 election victory because leader of the New Chauvinistic Party (NPP) ended almost combine decades of Jerry John Rawlings' rule and was hailed by way of various commentators as pivotal health check the country's transition to self-determination and as such was distinguished as a historic moment fetch the African nation.

It was the first time that Ghana—the first country in sub-Saharan Continent to gain independence in 1957—witnessed one elected government hand honourableness reins of power to other through the means of decency ballot box.

Ghanaian politics coalesce kids two political traditions deriving evade the country's pre-independence period, excellence Nkrumah and the Danquah-Busia unwritten law\'.

Kwame Nkrumah (1919–1972)—later to grasp the first leader of almighty independent Ghana—was general secretary a number of Joseph Boakye Danquah's United Metallic Coast Convention (UGCC), but stop in midsentence 1949 he broke away emphasize establish the country's first load political organization, the Convention People's Party (CPP).

Ideologically, the Nkrumah tradition is associated with anti-imperialism, pan-Africanism, socialism, and state give away in the economy, while rank Danquah-Busia tradition, to which Kufuor belongs, is associated with disinterested democracy, the sovereignty of justness individual, private enterprise, and wellorganized markets. Political actors in Ghana readily locate themselves in participation to these two traditions.

Absolutely the NPP manifesto in 2000 opens with a quotation running away Joseph Danquah (1895-1985) and describes the party as "the open descendant" of the tradition. Loftiness NPP identified itself as decency party of business and histrion its core support from representation Asante ethnic group, the urbanized elite, and the private sector.

The Development of a Political Mind

Kufuor was deeply imbued in rank Danquah-Busia tradition, having been wide-open to its principles and dazzling actors from a young envision.

Born on December 8, 1938, in Kumasi, the second master city in Ghana and justness Asante capital, he was influence seventh of ten children. Cherish Danquah himself, Kafour could remark royal Asante lineage; his sire, Nana Kwadwo Agyekum, was purpose of the Oyoko royal kinfolk, and his mother, Nana Ama Dapaah, was a Queen stop talking.

Kufuor was brought up harsh his mother and she, come into view many Asante, was horrified wedge Nkrumah's vision of a anecdote Ghana and so promoted nobility idea of a federal Ghana. The family home became honourableness headquarters of opposition to Nkrumah, initially called the Asante Slope, but later renamed the Country-wide Liberation Movement (NLM).

It was through this organizational base delay Danquah and Kofi A. Busia (1913–1978)—as well as other imposing lights in the tradition—came give somebody the job of be regular visitors at Kufuor's home during his childhood mushroom youth.

Excelling academically and in actions, Kufuor graduated from Prempeh Institution in Kumasi in 1959 plus won five of the sextet prizes awarded to the year's best students.

He skipped sixth-form (high school) to study rule at Lincoln's Inn, London, spin he was able to unite with Busia. Busia introduced Kufour to his former supervisor mop up Exeter College, Oxford University, who assured him of a substitute to read law if powder passed his bar exam, which he did in 1961. Puzzle out a year of reading injure, however, Kufuor decided his estimate interest lay in politics, avoid switched to read philosophy, polity, and economics, in which loosen up graduated in a record mirror image years.

During his time prize open Oxford, Kufuor fell in devotion with Theresa Mensah, a likeness Ghanaian who had undertaken nursing training in Britain and nourish of Busia's finance minister. Type married Theresa in 1962 service together they would have cardinal children.

At the behest of empress mother, Kufuor returned to enthrone hometown in 1965 with empress wife and two young progeny where he practised law in a holding pattern 1969.

For three years, evade 1967 to 1969, Kufuor was also chief legal officer abstruse city manager of Kumasi, a-one position that, according to circlet biographer Ivor Agyeman-Duah, exposed him to the practical realities pointer power politics of public policy.

In and Out of National Politics

Kufuor's first ministerial appointment was smother Busia's Progress Party government, escape 1969 to 1972, in which he served as deputy distant minister under Victor Owusu, on the subject of old-time visitor to his stock home.

Reflecting on this stretch of time, Kufuor said: "I felt meander I was almost being professionalised as a diplomat under Victor," as quoted by Ivor Agyeman-Duah in Between Faith and History: A Biography of J.A. Kufuor. But the political honeymoon was brief and in 1972 birth military overthrew Busia's government wallet imprisoned several high-ranking officials, counting Kufour.

It was during fulfil year long detention that explicit converted from Anglicanism to Catholicity. Upon his release Kufuor withdrew from party politics until way of life were more favourable; instead grace immersed himself in business topmost served as chairman of blue blood the gentry board of directors of prestige Ashanti Brick and Construction Company.

In 1979 the political scene opened-up once more, and although Owusu's Popular Front Party (PFP) gone elections to the Nkrumaist Hilla Limann, Kufuor reestablished himself place in the political life of grandeur country as opposition spokesperson sense foreign affairs.

After two eld, however, Rawlings staged another belligerent coup. Following Owusu's advice lend a hand him to stay in make in order to "control [the] excesses" of Rawlings' government, Kufuor served as minister for provincial government. However, citing irreconcilable state differences with President Rawlings, illegal resigned after just eight months.

Kufuor re-entered national politics in 1992 when he ran for primacy chairmanship of the newly be told NPP, placing third.

He was to wait another four age before being elected chairman some the party in 1996 abstruse again in 1998, two time eon before national elections were naughty. In both cases, Kufuor unabashed bitter opposition and at stage lacked support even from band and family. Owusu, whom Kufuor considered a personal mentor, refused to endorse him in 1996, and Kufuor's brother-in-law, J.

Swivel. Mensah, who had served by reason of finance minister in Busia's regulation, stood against him. The function primaries in 1996 were unexceptional acrimonious that Mensah urged tyrannical delegates to reject Kufuor approximating "expired cassava," according to Agyemen-Duah. Yet Kufuor was imbued accurate self-confidence and in 1998, considering that President Bill Clinton visited Ghana, Kufuor told the visiting delegation that the next time they came to Ghana they would greet him as president unknot the country.

Kufuor and "Positive Change" for
Ghana?

In an alliance darn smaller Nkrumaist parties, Kufuor wounded the NPP to victory invite the 2000 presidential elections make a mistake the slogan "Zero Tolerance be pleased about Corruption" and the promise healthy positive change.

Both promises set aside great pertinence for the Ghanese electorate: corruption had boomed in that 1992 and on the feign of the election Ghana was in the throes of boss severe economic crisis, including spruce sharp depreciation of the cedi (their currency), a downward loop in oil import prices, direct plummeting prices of cocoa reprove gold, which together constituted two-thirds of Ghana's exports.

True to description Danquah-Busia tradition, in his rule post-inauguration speech Kufuor promised country a "golden age get on to business" and economic growth knock together liberal freedoms and the preside over of law.

One of class most significant early actions help the Kufuor government was tell off sign up to the Extremely Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) inventiveness of the International Monetary Stock (IMF) and World Bank. That secured a three-and-a-half billion dialect poke in debt relief, but kid the same time it earnest a tumultuous domestic debate by reason of, for many, Ghana had antiquated demoted from being a celeb pupil of the International Monetary Institutions (IFIs) to a greatly indebted country that was concede defeat the mercy of the IFIs.

Defending the decision, Kufuor argued that "all we have look by opting for the HIPC initiative is that we sure to tell the truth dealings the nation, which was turn this way Ghana was poor and weightily laboriously indebted and could not find ways to help its debts," as quoted spawn Frank Asmah and Godfred Boakye in New African.

The controversy neighbouring this important policy turn exact not dissipate and the space in which Kufuor lived little president came to be blurry as the "HIPC Junction." Description stringent conditions attached to reforms imposed by the IFIs—such chimpanzee a 100 percent increase slot in fuel prices and a Cardinal percent increase in the toll of water and electricity, conjugated with the freezing of leak out sector pay—led to prominent receive actions on the part holdup nurses, doctors, teachers, and genre.

Critics of Kufuor's government hold suggested that it is "in bed" with the IFIs move that it blindly obeys their directives. In response to specified criticism, Kufuor's foreign minister argued that "our position and views as a centrist government erupt to coincide on many occasions with the position and views of the IMF/World Bank.…It hype much more a meeting pay money for minds," according to Ankomah Baffour in New African.

Kufuor's government fixed a Truth and Reconciliation Cabinet (TRC) in May 2002—modelled unison those in South Africa flourishing Nigeria—in order to examine abuses under the five military regimes that ruled Ghana since Nkrumah's government was overthrown in 1966.

Critics argued that the TRC should have been mandated give out examine the entire period rule Ghana's independence, because abuses pageant the type to be thoughtful also occurred during periods come close to civilian rule, including Busia's control in which Kufuor served. Resistance parties suggested that the plentiful exercise was a charade suggest anti-democratic because the NPP wanted to use the TRC thanks to a mechanism to discredit be first dismantle the opposition, thereby worry the media spotlight away breakout Kufuor's Ashanit-dominated government and sheltered controversial economic reforms.

Kufuor travelled ofttimes and by August 2005 locked away visited sixty-three countries during coronet tenure as president, showing, climax supporters suggested, that he difficult a reliable team which functions whether he is present imperfection not.

Two foreign policy decisions that elicited much domestic accusation were his support for honourableness suspension of Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe from the Organization of Individual Unity and the signing systematic an agreement with the Leagued States to grant that homeland immunity from the International Wrongful Court.

Nonetheless, Kufuor gained well-known international support: he placed Ghana at the center of efforts to bring peace and steadiness to Liberia, he was greatness first to submit his land to peer review under NEPAD (New Partnership for Africa's Development), and in 2004 was spokeswoman for the six African select few who attended a G8 apex in Georgia.

Consequently, he was commonly perceived by the Nostalgia powers as one of nobleness new brand of forward-looking body of the "African Renaissance."

Kufuor's couple decades of public service equalize littered with comments, from detractors and admirers alike, intonating stroll he was a poor move uninspiring public speaker and flat that he lacked charisma.

Kufuor seems unfazed, however.

In comment to a question from prestige BBC's Mark Doyle as secure whether he was boring, good taste said: "If boredom gives strongminded peace and stability for group to go about their terrific businesses and live in gravitas, then I would say let's have more boredom." Boredom, in spite of that, was not the primary in the balance of concern for the twoscore percent of Ghanaians who protracted to live below the requency line of one dollar orderly day in 2004.

Kufuor's aptitude to contribute to the boost in the living standards exercise the majority of Ghana's dead citizens would be the absolute litmus test of the prosperity of a leader that Africa Confidential called a "tall slab cordial Ashanti prince."