Major Kojo Boakye-Djan (rtd), prior to his infamous June 4 revolution, staged a ‘coup d’état’ in 1965 that made Ghana’s Speaker of Parliament Prof Mike Oquaye a president. Recounting events of his university days on 3FM last week, Maj. Boakye-Djan said he successfully led a revolution in 1965 to make Mike Oquaye president of the Akuafo Hall of the University of Ghana.
“I remember sometime [in] 1965 when we were in 2nd year…at the end of the year, we organized a party which was well attended, and when the incumbent SRC retained a profit of 20p we got irritated and nobody was going to do anything about it. “So I took the constitution and called for an emergency meeting. At the end of the emergency meeting I had overthrown the whole SRC government and then put [Mike] Oquaye there as the president of Akuafo Hall” he recounted. In 1965, Mike Oquaye and Kojo Boakye-Djan were classmates in the University and were in the same hall.
Maj. Boakye-Djan said Mike Oquaye accepted the position and acknowledged same. For his efforts, the ex-military officer said he was at the time nicknamed “Colonel Burmudian”, in reference to an Algerian General who overthrew a civilian government, whose stature, he observed, was very much like him. “When[ever] I was walking around Legon campus, they used to call me Colonel Burmudian, an Algerian General who overthrew the civilian administration around that time; very slim and wiry like I was,” he said.
Revolution ‘is in my blood’
Boakye-Djan who later masterminded the overthrow of the Supreme Military Council in the June 4 uprising admitted that revolution has always been in his blood. “It’s always been there,” he stated.
He, however, added that the June 4 revolution was substantially different from other revolutions because it was a military force seeking to overthrow a military regime and that required some violence. “You can only do it by firefight, it’s not like a civilian regime where you rumble tanks into the broadcasting house and say ‘I, so so and so have taken over…but when there is a sitting military regime and you’re organizing a counter coup, it’s got to be a bullet for bullet and ours for instance lasted for more than 48 hours”, he said.
The veteran soldier who describes himself, as the founding father of the June 4 revolution was quick to state that a counter coup like the June 4 is pro-democracy but an anti-constitution coup against a sitting government is illegal. He cautioned that under no circumstance should Ghanaians entertain an anti-democracy revolution.
Source: 3news.com
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Rawlings is a lucky guy because under circumstances surronding his regims and the corruptions, which took place under his watch, of which others were executed and he is still alife and has the audacity to criticize in the manner he does as if he is the only saint. Mind you those alleged corruptions heaped on other Heads of State had not been proven yet.If you consider the case of Katakyie Afrifa, who had at the time been democratically elected to represent his People in Parliment,was nevertheless killed and so deprived the People of Asante Mampong their democratic right, then Mr JJ should be treading very lightly. The Ghana International Airport still bears the Name of Kotoka as honor for the same course shared and fought by him and Katakyie. Now Mr Obed Asamoah ,a prominent Lawyer is telling us that JJ could not have been a Founder of the NDC neither, inferably, a leader of the Party on whose ticket he became a President. Is this act persuant to the Constitution.Could somebody come out to educate me about the Point Iam making here? And when did he resign from the Army.
Please what kind of journalists do you have at your station that you can't get 'Houari Bourmedienne' former president of Algeria's name right. Please remember you are there to educate us as well.
Major Boakye-Djan (Rtd) and his cohorts have never been serious. No matter how they try to explain or justify their action it won't wash. He must know that the counter-coup he is talking about had already been staged by Lt. Gen. Akuffo and co. and had established the SMC2, which was already in the process of returning the country to Constitutional rule. The blood-bath they plunged the nation into was simply UNNECESSARY. You guys should render a full APPOLOGY to the nation. With all the excessive vices of the Acheampong regime you guys found nothing wrong with it just because the government was socialist inclined. Now a neutral military group stages a counter-coup in July 1978 and in less than a year you throw the country into confusion and instead of appologising you are here saying what? You socialists have never been serious!!!