₦airaland Forum

DID YOU KNOW?

- Late Ghana revolutionary leader, Jerry John Rawlings was the product of a secret, six-year love affair between Scottish pharmacist James Ramsay John and his Ghanaian mistress, Madam Victoria Agbotui who is from Volta Region, Ghana.

- His late mother, Madam Victoria Agbotui later became the head of the catering department at the State House in Accra, Ghana.

- His father, Mr. John, had apparently migrated to the then Gold Coast in 1935 with his Scottish wife Mary, to work for the (UAC).

- Six years after Mr. John had arrived in Ghana, he started a secret relationship with Madam Agbotui, who was already a caterer at the Ghanaian State House.

- The relationship lasted for six years till 1947 when Rawlings was born on June 22 in Accra.

- Unfortunately, Mr John refused to acknowledge Rawlings as his son – right up until his death in 1982 at the age of 75, for fear of rocking his marriage to Mary (his Scottish wife), who died in 1998.

- In order to preserve the Scottish heritage of her son, Madam Agbotui named him after his father as Jeremiah Rawlings John. But the name was later changed to Jerry John Rawlings following a clerical error when the young Rawlings signed up at the Royal Air Force (RAF) for advanced flight training.

- During his time in military training, the young Rawlings still desired to trace his roots and to meet his father.

- Mr. John and his wife Mary had moved back to Scotland when he was 13 and settled down at Dalbeattie.

- Rawlings, therefore, took a leave of absence from the RAF to track down his father, whom he had learnt, was working in a chemist’s shop in Dalbeattie. He eventually located the place but when he asked an old man behind the desk if he knew his father (Mr John), the old man replied that Mr John had moved away a long time before.

- Jerry’s suspicion, however, grew on the trip back to London that he had actually been speaking with his father in the store.

- Today, Rawlings still has distant relatives in Scotland even as his relatives there eventually learnt of the family secret that Mr James Ramsay John had kept from them.

- Rawlings did not complete any tertiary education beside Achimota Secondary School where he did not even acquire the G.C.E ‘O’ Level and had only an Air Force graduate diploma.

- Jerry Rawlings fully adopted Ghana as his nationality and his children identify as 100% Ghanaians.

- During the 1992 Presidential elections, some opposing candidates attempted to exploit his Scottish links by claiming Rawlings was not a full blooded Ghanaian, but the populace already knew Rawlings had decided/committed to be totally African and their leader.

- Jerry Rawlings first met his wife, Nana Agyebadu while in primary school at Achmota. After his full military training many years later, he went in search/hunt of Nana, found her and they dated for 10 years. They got married in 1977.

- They have 4 children - 3 daughters and 1 son.

The dramatic irony is that Jerry Rawlings became greater than the father who rejected him or any of the man's legal children. It was Jerry that actually inherited his name, 'Rawlings' and announced it to the world.


cc: lalasti.clala, Mynd.44

JJ Rawlings was able to achieve all what he did because he was not a full blooded African. He was a Scottish-Ghanian.

PS: Your mentions do not change the facts that
1. JJ Rawlings did what full blooded Ghanaians could not do.

2. Before Rawlings, there were black presidents who failed to reform Ghana. Even Nkrumah at a point deviated.

3. After Rawlings left office, Ghana started becoming worse. Today, Ghana is on her way back to pre-Rawlings period

dollarsplenty:
JJ Rawlings was able to achieve all what he did because he was not a full blooded African. He was a Scottish-Ghanian.

Lol. Are you saying full blooded Africans don't have the capacity to be real revolutionaries in the mould of Jerry Rawlings?

Anyway some people would agree with you and also point to development level of South Africa as being a direct or indirect outcome of its multiracial society.

Still, I think there are exceptional Africans (like Nelson Mandela).

Cornerstone just like Bob Marley.

dollarsplenty:
JJ Rawlings was able to achieve all what he did because he was not a full blooded African Ghanian. He was a Scottish-Ghanian.

You mean non-Scotttish Ghanians won't amount to nothing in life. That's a very lame statement.. Ghanians, over to you

SilentRiddles:
Lol. Are you saying full blooded Africans don't have the capacity to be real revolutionaries in the mould of Jerry Rawlings?

Anyway some people would agree with you and also point to development level of South Africa as being a direct or indirect outcome of its multiracial society.

Still, I think there are exceptional Africans (like Nelson Mandela).

He made a mistake generalizing African... He meant 'Ghanians`

Where's that South African guy with d red Barret

SilentRiddles:
Lol. Are you saying full blooded Africans don't have the capacity to be real revolutionaries in the mould of Jerry Rawlings?

Anyway some people would agree with you and also point to development level of South Africa as being a direct or indirect outcome of its multiracial society.

Still, I think there are exceptional Africans (like Nelson Mandela).

No wonder, he wasn't full blooded African.

Eyaah


Guys, always claim your legitimate children o

You don’t know what they will be tomorrow

Loolz

444crop:
Where's that South African guy with d red Barret

julius malema

What a touching story.
I was touched.

dollarsplenty:
JJ Rawlings was able to achieve all what he did because he was not a full blooded African. He was a Scottish-Ghanian.

Reject white supremacy

"The rejected stone later become the head corner stone."
Rawlings attained the apogee of his greatness.Ghana was privilege to have him.

RIP LEGEND

dollarsplenty:
JJ Rawlings was able to achieve all what he did because he was not a full blooded African. He was a Scottish-Ghanian.

This is pathetic!!

A man who was only ever raised in Africa and by Africans yet you ascribe his success to the blood that rejected him......learn to have some pride.

AndroBlaze:
This is pathetic!!

A man who was only ever raised in Africa and by Africans yet you ascribe his success to the blood that rejected him......learn to have some pride.

This has nothing to do with being proud as a black man. Tell me a black Ghanian who reformed Ghana better than JJ Rawlings. Not even Nkrumah.

dollarsplenty:
JJ Rawlings was able to achieve all what he did because he was not a full blooded African. He was a Scottish-Ghanian.

With the way black man behave when they have power, I have no choice but to agree with you. To a black man, power corrupt without exception.

Ur head dey dia

capatainrambo:
julius malema

A stone that a builder rejected has become the chief cornerstone.
Lalasticlala isn't God wonderful?