I entered politics in my 20s but became president at 62 – Kufuor

Four decades in the political wilderness, marked by military coups, prison detention, and widespread economic decay, provided former President John Agyekum Kufuor with the fortitude required to alter the trajectory of the nation upon assuming the presidency.

Reflecting on his journey during an exclusive interview on Joy News’ PM Express on Wednesday, October 28, the former Ghanaian leader revealed that the 40-year interval between his youth entry into public life and his historic inauguration at age 62 served as the ultimate crucible for his transformational governance agenda.

Entering active politics in his twenties, Kufuor’s early career was abruptly halted by the January 1972 military overthrow, which led to his arrest and subsequent 15-month imprisonment at Ussher Fort Prison alongside other parliamentarians and ministers of the Second Republic.

Rather than crushing his political ambitions, the former President noted that his incarceration and the subsequent decades of political instability only deepened his understanding of leadership and national governance.

Breaking the “culture of silence”

Recounting the atmosphere that characterized successive military regimes, the former President painted a picture of a nation crippled by fear, economic paralysis, and institutional decay.

“Things really were not working,” Kufuor stated, describing how citizens were gagged under a pervasive “culture of silence” where open political discourse was met with severe intimidation.

He observed that even after Ghana transitioned back to constitutional rule under the 1992 Constitution, the underlying structural and economic vulnerabilities persisted, leaving citizens disillusioned after decades of hardship.

A mandate for practical change

When he eventually secured the mandate of the electorate in the landmark 2000 elections, Kufuor took the oath of office in January 2001 with a clear, uncompromising resolve to offer Ghanaians a tangible alternative to decades of misrule.

“I went into politics in my 20s. I became president age 62,” Kufuor reflected. “I was determined to lead a government that would make our nation get the practical experience of what could be other than what the nation had become used to for a whole period of about 40 years.”

His reflections highlight how personal adversity and political patience paved the way for the socio-economic reforms that defined his tenure as President of the Fourth Republic.