Former president of Ghana, Jerry Rawlings, is dead.
Reports from Ghanaian media say he died Thursday morning at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) in Accra.
While Rawlings had, for at least one week, been on admission at Korle Bu for about a week for an undisclosed ailment, reports suggest that he may have died from complications due to the coronavirus disease.
Dele Momodu, publisher of Ovation Magazine who worked extensively in Ghana confirmed the death in a tweet.
He wrote, “The saddest news of this year. My God. Former President Jerry John Rawlings of Ghana has passed on. I’m completely devastated. Good night, an African hero.”
Born on June 22, 1947, he first came to power as a flight lieutenant of the Ghana Air Force following a coup d’état in 1979.
He then handed power over to a civilian government and again took back control of the country on December 31, 1981 as the Chairman of the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC).
Rawlings was a military leader and turned politician who ruled from 1981 until 1992 as head of a military government.
In 1992, Rawlings resigned from the military, founded the National Democratic Congress (NDC), and became the first President of the 4th Republic.
He was re-elected in 1996 for four more years.
