Edward Akufo-Addo (26 June 1906 – 17 July 1979) was a

Ghanaian Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

politician and lawyer. He was a member of the " Big Six" leaders of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) and one of the founding fathers of Ghana who engaged in the fight for Ghana's independence. He became the Chief Justice (1966–70), and later

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

(1970–72), of the Republic of Ghana. He was the father of the current Ghanaian head of state,

Nana Addo Akufo-Addo Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo ( ; born 29 March 1944) is a Ghanaian politician who has served as the president of Ghana since 7 January 2017. In 2020, he was re-elected for his second term, which will end on 6 January 2025. Akufo-Addo previously ...

. Edward Akufo-Addo being a trained lawyer help him play his role well in Ghana's Independence. He use his profession to contribute in building the nation. He use his profession to help maintain law and order in the country and help in establishment of rule of law.

Early life and education

Akufo-Addo was born on 26 June 1906 at

Dodowa Dodowa is a town located in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana, it is the district capital of Dangme West district, now Shai Osudoku District. The city is 39 km from the capital city, Accra. The notable tourist site found there is the Dodowa ...

in the

Greater Accra Region The Greater Accra Region has the smallest area of Ghana's 16 administrative regions, occupying a total land surface of 3,245 square kilometres. This is 1.4 per cent of the total land area of Ghana. It is the second most populated region, befor ...

to William Martin Addo-Danquah and Theodora Amuafi. Both of his parents were from the southern Ghanaian town of Akropong. He had his primary education at Presbyterian Primary and Middle Schools at Akropong. He continued to Presbyterian Training College, Akropong and Abetifi Theological Training College. In 1929, he entered

Achimota College Achimota School ( /ɑːtʃimoʊtɑː/ ), formerly Prince of Wales College and School at Achimota, later Achimota College, now nicknamed Motown, is a co-educational boarding school located at Achimota in Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana. The schoo ...

, where he won a scholarship to

St Peter's College, Oxford St Peter's College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford and is located in New Inn Hall Street, Oxford, United Kingdom. It occupies the site of two of the university's medieval halls, dating back to at least the 14th ...

. He studied mathematics, Politics and Philosophy and he went on to graduate with honours in philosophy and politics in 1933.

Pre-political career

Akufo-Addo was called to the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...

Bar,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, UK, in 1940 and returned to what was then the

Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana: ** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) ** Dutch G ...

to start a private legal practice a year later in Accra.

Early political career

In 1947, he became a founding member of the

United Gold Coast Convention The United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) was a political party founded in 1947 whose aim was to bring about Ghanaian independence from their British colonial masters after the Second World War. The United Gold Coast Convention appointed its leade ...

(UGCC) and was one of the " Big Six" (the others being

Ebenezer Ako-Adjei Dr. Ebenezer Ako Adjei (17 June 1916 – 14 January 2002) was a Ghanaian statesman, politician, lawyer and journalist. He was a founding member of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC), the first political party of Ghana (then Gold Coast). A ...

, Joseph Boakye Danquah, Kwame Nkrumah,

Emmanuel Obetsebi-Lamptey Emmanuel Odarkwei Obetsebi-Lamptey (26 April 1902 – 29 January 1963) was a political activist in the British colony of the Gold Coast. He was one of the founding fathers of Ghana and one of the founders and leaders of the United Gold Coast C ...

and

William Ofori Atta William Ofori Atta (10 October 1910 – 14 July 1988), popularly called "Paa Willie", was a founding member of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) and one of the founding fathers of Ghana, as one of " The Big Six" detained by the British co ...

) detained after disturbances in Accra in 1948. From 1949 to 1950, he was a member of the Gold Coast Legislative Council and the Coussey Constitutional Commission.

Post-independence career

After independence (1962–64), Akufo-Addo was a Supreme Court Judge, one of three judges who sat on the treason trial involving

Tawia Adamafio Tawia Adamafio (born Joseph Tawia Adams) was a Ghanaian minister in the Nkrumah government during the first republic of Ghana. Politics Adamafio was a member of the Convention People's Party and rose to become its General Secretary. In 1960, he ...

, Ako Adjei and three others after the

Kulungugu bomb attack The Kulungugu bomb attack was a failed assassination attempt on Kwame Nkrumah, the President of Ghana. On 1 August 1962, Kwame Nkrumah stopped in Kulungugu, a minor port of entry in the Pusiga District in Upper East Bawku. There was a bomb exp ...

on President Kwame Nkrumah and for doing so was dismissed with fellow judges for finding some of the accused not guilty. From 1966 to 1970, Akufo-Addo was appointed Chief Justice by the

National Liberation Council The National Liberation Council (NLC) led the Ghanaian government from 24 February 1966 to 1 October 1969. The body emerged from a ''coup d'état'' against the Nkrumah government carried out jointly by the Ghana Police Service and Ghana Armed For ...

(NLC) regime, as well as Chairman of the Constitutional Commission (which drafted the 1969 Second Republican Constitution)."Akora Justice Edward Akufo-Addo"
Old Achimotan Association. He was also head of the NLC Political Commission during this same time period. From 31 August 1970 until his deposition by coup d'état on 13 January 1972, Akufo-Addo was

President of Ghana The president of the Republic of Ghana is the elected head of state and head of government of Ghana, as well as commander-in-chief of the Ghana Armed Forces. The current president of Ghana is Nana Akufo-Addo, who won the 2020 presidential el ...

in the Second Republic. Real power rested with the prime minister, Dr

Kofi Abrefa Busia Kofi Abrefa Busia (born 11 July 1913 – 28 August 1978) was a Ghanaian political leader and academic who was Prime Minister of Ghana from 1969 to 1972. As a nationalist leader and prime minister, he helped to restore civilian government to th ...

. On 17 July 1979, Akufo-Addo died of natural causes."Edward Akufo-Addo"
, ''Ghana Nation''.

Awards and honors

*Honorary Doctorate from the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

in 1971.

References

External links

"Dr. Edward Akufo Addo"
''Ghana Nation'', 15 November 2011. – {{DEFAULTSORT:Akufo-Addo, Edward 1906 births 1979 deaths 20th-century Ghanaian judges Ghanaian Presbyterians Presidents of Ghana Alumni of Achimota School Alumni of St Peter's College, Oxford Members of the Middle Temple United Gold Coast Convention politicians People from Greater Accra Region Justices of the Supreme Court of Ghana Ghanaian independence activists