Former Minister of Information, Fritz Baffour, has shared a childhood recollection of the late former President Jerry John Rawlings, describing him as a fearless defender who stood up against bullies even at a young age.
Speaking in a tribute following the passing of the late former First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, Mr. Baffour recounted how the two attended the same early childhood school in Accra, then known as Mrs. Sam’s School — later renamed New Nation.
“There was a school that was set up by a lady called Mrs. Adu Sam. It was called Mrs. Sam’s; later on, it became New Nation, and that became the flavour for most of the elite Ghanaians, so they sent their children there.
“It was crèche, KG and primary. Nana Konadu went there and Jerry Rawlings was there… I was in that school. I went there about three years old. Rawlings was one year older than her,” Mr. Baffour recounted on Channel One TV’s The Point of View on Wednesday October 29.
He said even at that young age, Jerry Rawlings had earned a reputation for bravery and fairness, often stepping in to defend classmates who were being mistreated.
“We all knew each other. I spent two years there, and we heard of Jerry John who, when there was any problem and anybody had been bullied, they would say go and call Jerry John. So at that age, he was fighting bullies. This is the truth,” he said.
The late former President Jerry John Rawlings, who led Ghana from 1981 to 2001, remains one of the country’s most influential and controversial political figures, remembered for his populist leadership style, anti-corruption stance, and transformative policies.
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