The 1981 coup against President Hilla Limann was “obnoxious”, Senior Research Fellow at the Legon Centre for International Affairs and Diplomacy (LECIAD) at the University of Ghana, Dr Vladimir Antwi-Danso has said.

Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings, on December 31, 1981, led a group of military officers to oust Dr. Limann after the late President’s investiture in September 1979.

At a public lecture to mark the 35th anniversary of Limann’s investiture, Dr Antwi-Danso said Limann became “a forgotten hero after the obnoxious coup”.

“…The press can quote me, I say that 1981 coup was obnoxious. It gave us nothing. It was uncalled for. There was no chaos. It was very uncalled for,” Antwi-Danso stressed.

“I’m sad because that is the one that redrew the contours of the CPP. It was a coup that has redrawn the contours of the CPP and impoverished the CPP. It has balkanised the CPP up to today,” he observed.

Rawlings ruled as a Military leader for about 11 years before contesting and winning two democratic elections as a civilian. Cumulatively, he led Ghana for almost two decades.