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Felix Kumah-Abiwu Sabella Ogbobode Abidde Editors Jerry John Rawlings Leadership and Legacy: A Pan-African Perspective Jerry John Rawlings Felix Kumah-Abiwu • Sabella Ogbobode Abidde Editors Jerry John Rawlings Leadership and Legacy: A Pan-African Perspective Editors Felix Kumah-Abiwu Sabella Ogbobode Abidde Department of Africana Studies Department of History and Political Science Kent State University Alabama State University Kent, OH, USA Montgomery, AL, USA ISBN 978-3-031-14666-4 ISBN 978-3-031-14667-1 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-14667-1 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors, and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland To the memory of former President Jerry John Rawlings (June 22, 1947–November 12, 2020) And to all past and future political leaders of Africa. The Africa we want for the future generation is in our collective hands as Africans. Let us continue to demand effective/servant leadership from our leaders and promote a culture of accountability across the African continent. Preface The opportunity to lead this book project on the leadership and legacy of former President Jerry John Rawlings has not only been a great honor for me in many ways, but working with my co-editor on the project has been one of the rewarding moments in my professional career as an academic/scholar on African politics and the field of African affairs. Like many of our contemporaries who had their formative education on the continent of Africa in the late 1980s, 1990s, and the 2000s, my co-editor and I also had our formative educational years on the continent during these periods when Jerry Rawlings could not be avoided in our educational pathways. Jerry Rawlings did not only dominate Ghana’s political landscape but his name was pop- ular across the African continent by his long stay in power as a military leader (1981–1993) and a democratically elected President of Ghana (1993–2001). For some, Rawlings epitomizes the leadership traits and ideals of some of our transformational/nationalist African leaders such as Kwame Nkrumah, Jomo Kenyatta, and Kenneth Kaunda, among many others, who not only fought for our freedom from European colonial rule but were also outspoken about anti-imperialism and neoco- lonialism in post-colonial Africa. These nationalist leaders promoted the ethos and ideas of Pan-Africanism, African personality, and African unity. Jerry Rawlings also promoted these ideas during his era. Former President Rawlings was considered by most as a transformational leader, and Ghana is today a shining example of stability, democracy, and development because of the leading role he played in the country’s transition to democratic rule in the early 1990s. Many of his admirers also share the view of how former President Rawlings was a compassionate leader who devoted his life to improving the human condition, especially the plight of ordinary people. He was a fearless, pragmatic, and visionary leader with big ideas. It is also well-documented in the extant literature that the role and leadership of Jerry Rawlings concerning his pragmatic deci- sion to accept and implement the external aid package that was negotiated in the 1980s were critically important in changing the direction of Ghana to growth/development from a near economic collapse and social decay in the 1980s. While recog- nizing the roles that have been played by previous political leaders of Ghana and ordinary Ghanaians in the progress and development of the country since 1957, vii viii Preface Ghana’s admiration today in the international community as one of Africa’s stable and advancing democratic countries is partly due, as many have argued, to Jerry Rawlings’ leadership. His post-presidency roles on the African continent with the African Union (AU) on important issues of conflict resolution and peacebuilding initiatives have also been widely applauded. Yet, Jerry Rawlings has also been despised by some because of his authoritarian style of leadership and human rights issues, especially during the military regime of the AFRC and the PNDC eras. In sum, the name Jerry John Rawlings, or J.J. Rawlings, as he was popularly known, like other political leaders of history, tends to evoke mixed reactions and multifaceted views, opinions, and varied perspectives among scholars, public intellectuals, and ordinary Ghanaians and Africans. His passing on November 12, 2020, not only shocked and saddened many Ghanaians, Africans, and those in the African diaspora, but going through the process of think- ing about J.J. Rawlings and the critical question of how his leadership and legacy can be critically assessed/examined and how he can best be remembered, gave birth to my idea to put this scholarly book together to honor his memory. Thanks to my colleague, and co-editor, Dr. Sabella Ogbobode Abidde, who agreed to the idea of us working together as co-editors on this important and timely book in a mutual spirit of scholarly collaboration, Pan-Africanism, and African unity to honor late former President Jerry Rawlings’ leadership and legacy. Kent, OH, USA Felix Kumah-Abiwu Montgomery, AL, USA Sabella Ogbobode Abidde Fall 2022 Acknowledgment The process of writing an important/timely book of this nature can be challenging, but it can equally be rewarding when surrounded by loving family members, trusted colleagues, and other great friends who provide constant support and encouragement along the way. We would like to express our profound thanks and appreciation to our immediate family members for their extraordinary support and encouragement throughout the process of working on this book. To our colleagues and fellow scholars who have contributed to this edited volume, we say thank you for sharing your ideas and perspectives on Jerry Rawlings. Special thanks to the anonymous reviewers of the proposal and the manuscript. Your constructive comments and useful suggestions have enriched the book. Thank you! Thanks to colleagues in our respective academic departments at Kent State University and Alabama State University and other friends in the academy who have continued to encourage us to keep the scholarly agenda on political leadership in Africa and other critical issues on African affairs moving forward for a better future for the continent. We also appreciate the professionals at Springer Publishing for all their support. To you, Lorraine Klimowich, for your extraordinary guidance and professionalism throughout the process. Thanks to you, Mahalakshmi Saravanan, and the rest of the team for your excellent work. And thanks to you, the reader of this important book on the leadership and legacy of Jerry John Rawlings. We hope that your knowledge and understanding of his leadership and legacy in terms of his achievements and limitations as a political leader will inspire and challenge us to create a brighter pathway for Africa’s effective leadership, peace, security, democracy, and overall development. ix Introduction The literature on African politics and the broader field of African affairs has for several decades underscored the importance of effective political leadership to Africa’s peace, stability, and development. In other words, weak, corrupt, vision- less, and ineffective political leadership as well as fragmented state institutions have contributed largely to Africa’s current challenges. While the African continent con- tinues to suffer from these challenging issues, especially with poor leadership, Africa has also been blessed with transformational political leaders such as late former President Jerry John Rawlings of Ghana among other extraordinary leaders in the post-colonial era. To enhance our knowledge and understanding of former President Jerry Rawlings’ political leadership and legacy as one of Africa’s transformational leaders, the idea emerged to produce this edited volume titled, Jerry John Rawlings-Leadership and Legacy: A Pan-African Perspective. The main thesis of the book focuses on the centrality of political leadership and strong democratic institutions as important elements for Africa’s quest for development with a focus on Jerry Rawlings. The emphasis on Rawlings’ leadership and legacy is meant to provide a context of how his political leadership was instrumental in changing the direction of Ghana from a near economic collapse and social decay in the 1980s to a country that has embraced political reforms in the 1990s. While former President Rawlings has generally been described as one of Africa’s transformational/compassionate leaders who devoted his life to improving the human condition, especially the plight of the ordinary people, he was also criticized by some for his authoritarian style of leadership and human rights issues. The central pur- pose of the book is threefold. First, it examines the role and place of good and effective political leadership in the development of Africa. Second, it seeks to situate Jerry Rawlings’ political leadership and legacy in post-colonial Ghana and the rest of Africa. Finally, the book seeks to enhance our knowledge and understanding of Jerry Rawlings as one of Africa’s preeminent political leaders, although he has also been vilified by some for his limitations. xi xii Introduction To achieve the above objectives of the book, we have been successful in gather- ing leading experts/scholars on African politics and the broader field of African affairs who have contributed outstanding chapters on various aspects or perspectives on the leadership and legacy of Jerry Rawlings. These perspectives cover the political eras of Jerry Rawlings on critical issues of political leadership, Ghana’s foreign economic relations, policy making/administration, heritage tourism, gender and women issues, Pan-Africanism, and the African diaspora. By systematically examining the different viewpoints of Rawlings’ leadership and legacy, we have provided a balanced perspective in our efforts to better understand his leadership/ legacy and Ghana’s political landscape during his eras. The Pan-African perspective of the book with regards to the contributors and their interdisciplinary fields of expertise also makes the book unique, timely, and novel. The book contains a total of 20 chapters from contributors with backgrounds and expertise in various disciplines in the social sciences. Areas of their expertise range from the fields of political science, foreign policy, public administration, policy studies, economics, legal studies, anthropology, geography/urban studies, and soci- ology. The book is divided into three main parts. Part I provides an overview of governance and leadership in Africa, while Part II examines Ghana’s political landscape with a focus on the political eras of Jerry Rawlings. Part III explores Rawlings’ leadership and legacy from a Pan-African perspective. Chapter 1, which is titled “Leadership-Institutions-Development Nexus in Africa: A Jerry John Rawlings Perspective,” draws on the leadership-institutions- development nexus or framework to examine leadership and development in Africa with a focus on Jerry Rawlings. Written by Eunice Annan-Aggrey, Senanu K. Kutor, Elmond Bandauko, and Godwin Arku, the chapter argues that poor leadership and weak institutions are still responsible for Africa’s development challenges. Challenges such as poverty, inequalities, unemployment, conflicts, and poor public service delivery are cases in point. With regards to Jerry Rawlings, the authors argue that he has been hailed as one of Africa’s transformational leaders given the importance of his leadership in impacting state institutions and development in Ghana and the rest of Africa. Chapter 2, with the title, “Africa’s Nationalist and Transformational Leaders: A Survey,” by Richmond Danso, looks at the life and politics of three African leaders- Kwame Nkrumah (Ghana), Jerry John Rawlings (Ghana), and Thomas Sankara (Burkina Faso). The chapter argues that these leaders have not only left a lasting footprint on the politics of their countries as well as the continent, but they also had a huge impact on the political, economic, and social aspects of their respective countries and the African continent. The chapter underscores the commonality of the three leaders in their extraordinary impact and the way they have inspired each other, especially Rawlings and Sankara. Thus, Jerry Rawlings drew inspiration from Kwame Nkrumah’s political thought and ideas on Pan-Africanism, African unity, and anti-imperialism, while Thomas Sankara was also inspired by Jerry Rawlings’ revolutionary ethos and ideas on anti-imperialism.