Four African countries with the odd history of experiencing December 31 coups

Ghana

Ghana‘s December 31 coup happened in 1981 thanks to Jerry John Rawlings. This is most interesting for the very reason that Rawlings had overseen a coup only two years and later agreed for a democratic transition.

After 1981, Rawlings ruled as military leader until he was sworn in as a democratically-elected president in January of 1993.

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Why did 1981 happen in Ghana? Rawlings felt that Hilla Limann, the man who became president after the 1979 elections, was unable to resolve Ghana’s neocolonial economic dependency.

Rawlings and those who support him refer to 1981 as a “revolution” that targeted the elite.