Mahama recounts childhood trauma after father’s detention following 1966 coup

John Dramani Mahama has shared a deeply personal experience from his youth, revealing that he suffered recurring nightmares as a teenager after his father was detained in the aftermath of Ghana’s 1966 military coup.

The President disclosed this emotional episode while speaking to dignitaries at the opening of the 2026 Judicial Year and the 20th anniversary celebration of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights in Arusha.

The gathering brought together judges, legal experts, policymakers, and human rights advocates from across Africa to assess progress and ongoing challenges in the administration of justice on the continent.

In remarks emphasizing judicial independence and human rights protection, President Mahama described the psychological impact his father’s detention had on him during adolescence.

He recalled frequently dreaming of his father standing before judges awaiting a verdict on his fate. His father was detained once and faced the risk of detention twice more, a situation that triggered recurring nightmares.

Mahama explained that his father had served as a minister in the government of Kwame Nkrumah. Following the coup, he and other officials were instructed to report to the police for their safety but were subsequently interrogated and held in custody for more than a year.

He added that by 1974, when another coup led by I.K. Acheampong occurred, his father had left politics and was working as a rice farmer and agribusinessman.

After the February 24, 1966 coup that overthrew Nkrumah’s administration, several former officials were rounded up, questioned, and in some cases detained for extended periods.