45 years ago today, President Hillary Liman was sworn in on September 24, 1979, after a counter-coup sacked the Supreme Military Council (SMC II) and the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) held power for just 112 days.
According to the late Osahene Boakye Gyan, the main architect and promoter of the uprising, the original date set was September 21st to pay tribute to the late Dr. Nkrumah and inaugurate the rightful successor to the first President of the Republic of Ghana.
However, intelligence picked up on the activities of some rebels in the ranks of the AFRC who had no intention of leaving the scene to do anything nefarious, in fact they reappeared 27 months later to reverse all the achievements of the Liman-led PNP government.
As we mark this day, let us recall the immortal words of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Osagyefo, that “Any coup is an abomination to constitutional rule” and the unforgettable words of Dr. Hilla Liman, that “…we do not owe our lives to anyone else.”
“Those who seized power in the name of the Provisional National Defense Council (PNDC) have ended up leaving our people defenseless, disempowered and impoverished. The verdict is clear. It will not do us any good to indulge in adventurism, singing empty songs to hide our anger, jealousy, hatred and incompetence.”
We must never repeat this. The Third Republic Constitution was short-lived, but the Fourth Republic worked. Let this Constitution continue to exist. We must uphold our common oath to the 1992 Constitution. No matter how bad anyone thinks it is, we will adhere to it. No matter how long the night lasts, the sun will rise again.
Sanity, hope and respect were restored to the Liman-led government, the provisions of the Constitution were apparently working and the supply of essential goods was guaranteed. The shops were full again. Ghana Airways and Black Star Lines were being refurbished and revamped. But the darkness of 31 December 1981 struck and the rest is history. Was it necessary? It wasn’t and no amount of desperate trying can justify it.
In the words of Maya Angelou, “History, despite its painful consequences, cannot be forgotten, but if we are courageous, it need not be repeated.” Let us learn from the past with a positive mindset to rebuild and vow to “never again” against any dangerous trend.
May God bless our motherland Ghana and make our country great and strong so that the memory of Dr. Hilla Liman, intelligently expounded by Professor Emeritus Ivan Addae Mensah in “Hila Liman: Scholar, Diplomat, Politician – A Biography”, will live on forever.
Ganayan Museum
Footage: Ghanaian President Hilla Liman arrives in Dakar for a three-day official visit and issues a joint statement with Senegalese President Abdou Diouf denouncing Libya’s subversive activities as “an attempt to undermine African countries” (1981).
♬ Original Sound – Ghanaianmuseum
