Rawlings Told Me 'Atta Mills Had a Brain Like No Other' - Fritz Baffour

ACCRA — The political partnership between Jerry John Rawlings and Professor John Evans Atta Mills remains a cornerstone of National Democratic Congress (NDC) history.

While Rawlings was the fiery frontman, he held an immense, reverent respect for Mills’ intellectual prowess. Baffour, who filmed Mills' vice-presidential acceptance speech in 1996, recalled Rawlings speaking of the academic-turned-politician with immense fascination. "He told me the man had a brain—a fascinating brain—and a deep belief in his energy," Baffour said.

Rawlings was so confident in Mills that he told Baffour: "If this man ever becomes president, I want you to work with him as well as you’ve worked with me." When the NDC shockingly lost the 2000 election to the NPP, marking the end of the Rawlings era, the defeat hit the party founder hard.

"He believed that we had lost the plot—that we didn't have to lose and shouldn't have lost that election," Baffour reflected. "He was taken aback and wasn't happy about it. But being a soldier, he ultimately said, 'Let's move on, let's see what we can do in 2004.'"