Four former African military leaders praised for embracing democratic government

Jerry John Rawlings

Ghana’s longest-serving head of state, Jerry Rawlings was a two-time coup maker who supported the institutionalization of democratic government after his first coup. But only a few months into the democratic government of Hilla Liman in 1981, Rawlings forced his way to the helm again.

From that time until 1992, Rawlings was Ghana’s military head of state. However, he oversaw the transition into democracy, created a political party and was twice elected to the presidency in elections that were the beginning of Ghana’s concretization as a democratic African state.

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These days, he is a revered statesman who still enjoys popular support in the country.