Former Minister of Education and Member of Parliament for Bosomtwe, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, has reflected on his student days at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), describing them as years shaped by political instability, fear, and repeated military takeovers in Ghana.
Speaking on The Career Trail on Joy Learning TV and Joy News, he explained that his generation grew up during a period when coups and military rule defined national life, leaving lasting emotional and psychological effects on young people.
“Born in 1964, by 1966 the first coup had happened and Nkrumah was overthrown. Then Busia came in 1969, and he was overthrown in 1972 by I. K. Acheampong. Acheampong stayed in power until 1978,” he recounted.
“In 1978 there was a palace coup, then a brief transition, and then Rawlings came. Boom, another coup. Then we thought democracy had finally returned under Hilla Limann in 1979. But on December 31, 1981, there was another coup by Jerry John Rawlings,” he continued.
He said growing up under military rule meant living with curfews and constant fear.
“I lived all my life under military dictatorship. There were curfews where by 6 p.m. you had to be indoors. If you went out, you did so at your own risk. You could be beaten, arrested, or even killed,” he shared.
He also recalled a famous public exchange that captured the political climate of the time.
“Remember somebody asking Jerry John Rawlings, ‘When are you handing over?’ And he famously said, ‘Hand over to whom?’ It was a big newspaper banner headline,” he noted.
According to him, the political instability was not just history in books, but a lived reality that shaped how young people understood life and the future.
“For us growing up, these were not just headlines. They were our reality,” he said.
One incident that particularly stayed with him was the execution of General Afrifa, which heightened fear among young students at the time.
“The youth were in shock. We were in school when we got the news that General Afrifa had been executed. The fear, the anguish, the trauma among children was real,” he recalled.
“Now I look back and say they probably should have given us counselling. We were going through a traumatic time as the youth of this country,” he added.
By the time he reached KNUST, Dr Adutwum said student life had become deeply entangled with national politics and opposition to military rule.
“At KNUST, beyond studying, everything was about politics. The preoccupation of students was how to get Rawlings out of power. The adults could not raise their voices for fear of being captured or killed. It was the students who stood up,” he stated.
Memory full
This climate, he said, led to frequent demonstrations that often disrupted academic work and, at times, forced universities to close temporarily.
“There were demonstrations upon demonstrations. I was the Student Assistant Secretary of the Student Representative Council of KNUST, and I was part of the movement calling for change. Sometimes we sneaked our way to Kejetia and gathered there before moving onto the streets chanting for change. We were tired of military dictatorship,” he reiterated.
Despite the tension and uncertainty, he said those experiences shaped his understanding of leadership and resilience, although he now believes the emotional strain of the period should have been addressed with counselling and psychological support.
