A former member of the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC), Ex-Sgt Daniel Akata Pore, has revealed his involvement in the June 4 uprising, under the influence of former President Jerry John Rawlings.
Ex-Sgt Akata Pore said he was persuaded by Rawlings to provide information that helped fuel the uprising.
On June 4, 1979, Flt Lt Jerry Rawlings led a change in government by the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) via a coup.
June 4th Revolution: JJ Rawlings fooled us into supporting uprising. – Ex-Sgt. Akata Pore pic.twitter.com/dNU5dI4zHd
— Joy 99.7 FM (@Joy997FM) May 15, 2024
The June 4th Revolution, also known as the June 4th Uprising, arose out of corruption, bad governance and frustration among the general public.
But speaking on JoyNews’ Upfront, the former soldier highlighted what he saw as Rawlings’ disdain for Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and his resistance to acknowledging Dr Nkrumah’s accomplishments.
“I didn’t know that he hated Dr. Nkrumah. Rawlings fooled everybody. Look, Rawlings gave me three books on the ABC of Socialism. When he met me for the first time, he said, ‘I really respect you because you can see forward. You will have to follow Nkrumah,” he told Raymond Acquah.
Akata Pore also disclosed that Rawlings manipulated certain prominent military figures to rally behind his agenda, ultimately leading to the uprising.
“That’s why I was interested in helping him out. Assisting him in bringing about change was tricky because I was working for military intelligence as well. So, in a way, I betrayed the military, but it was for the greater good in my view, so that’s why I did so.”
He also recounted an instance where they had planned to remove a statue of Lt Gen Emmanuel Kwasi Kotoka and how Rawlings fumed at the idea.
“I regretted it because immediately after we took over, it became clear that Rawlings was not a fan of Nkrumah. We wanted to bring Kotoka’s statue to the airport, and Rawlings was furious because Kotoka was a dictator and how he was killed and all that,” he added.
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