In January 1972, Ignatius Kutu Acheampong led a bloodless coup d'état to overthrow the democratically elected government of the Progress Party and its leader, Dr Kofi Abrefa Busia.

This event led to him becoming the Head of State and Chairman of the National Redemption Council (NRC), which was later transformed into the Supreme Military Council (SMC) on October 9, 1975, with Colonel Acheampong (promoted to General) as its chairman.

The era of General Acheampong has been described as effective but also oppressive by some historians and citizens.

Under his regime, Ghana switched from driving on the left to right-hand traffic in a campaign called ‘Operation Keep Right’. There was also the famous ‘Operation Feed Yourself’ initiative and the repudiation of Ghana’s foreign debts with the ‘yentua’ slogan.

While these changes were taking place, plans to oust him were in motion as members of the Supreme Military Council were plotting to remove him from power in 1978.

Acheampong was executed a year later in 1979, but prior to this, he was forced to resign from his position, leading to a chain reaction in the military hierarchy.

A newspaper clipping from July 6, 1978, seen by GhanaWeb, shows how the resignation sparked significant changes in the Ghana Armed Forces where Acheampong had once served as General of the Army.

The headline read; ‘Kutu Resigns, Akuffo Is New Head of State’, and came with positional changes and the associated names within the Ghana Army and SMC.

First, Lt. General F.W.K Akuffo, Chief of Defence Staff, assumed the role as Chairman of the Supreme Military Council. Next in line was Army Commander, Major General R.E.A Kotei, who was promoted to the position of Chief of Defence Staff.

Another promotion was given to Brigadier N.A. Odartey Wellington, who was promoted to the rank of Major General and appointed head of the Army Command.

Changes also occurred among the leadership of the Supreme Military Council.

These changes included the appointment of Mr. Ernest Ako as Inspector General of Police, Rear Admiral J.K Amedume as Navy Commander, Major General E.K Utuka as Border Guard Commander, Air Vice Marshal G.Y Boakye as Air Force Commander, and Major General N.A Odartey Wellington as Army Commander.

In addition to the revised changes in the SMC, Colonel J.K Amoah was appointed as Commander of the First Infantry Brigade and a member of the NRC, while Brigadier Nunoo Mensah was appointed as Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Defence and also served as a member of the NRC.

See the newspaper clippings from July 6, 1978 below:



This article was first published by GhanaWeb on Sunday, July 16, 2023

MA

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