SIDE-EYE: Akuffo Was Ambitious from the Start and Always Appeared to Look at Acheampong With a Side-Eye – Major Ampofo

General Fred Akuffo was already an ambitious military officer long before he eventually overthrew General Ignatius Kutu Acheampong, according to Major Patrick Adjei-Ampofo.

Major Adjei-Ampofo, who worked closely with General Acheampong, said he had long observed what he described as an unmistakable ambition in General Akuffo, suggesting that the relationship between the two senior officers was not always as cordial as it appeared in public.

“The person who overthrew him was ambitious. This is General Akufo. He was very, very ambitious from the beginning,” Major Adjei-Ampofo said.

He went further, pointing to what he believed was a revealing feature in photographs of the two men appearing together in public. “If you look at their pictures in public, you always look at him like this. Like, ‘I am him,’” he said, apparently describing the way General Akuffo would look at General Acheampong.

The remark paints a striking picture of the political and military tensions that existed behind the scenes during General Acheampong’s era. Despite his assessment of General Akuffo’s ambition, Major Adjei-Ampofo acknowledged his professional competence and military credentials.

Asked about General Akuffo’s military background, he confirmed that the former military leader was a Sandhurst-trained officer. “General Akufo was a Sandhurst man,” he said. In contrast, General Acheampong had risen through the military ranks and had also received training outside Ghana.

Major Adjei-Ampofo, however, was emphatic about Acheampong’s abilities as an officer. “But I worked with him. He was a very efficient, competent officer,” he said.

According to him, Acheampong possessed abilities that set him apart from many of his colleagues at the highest levels of the military. “It was God-given,” he said, describing Acheampong’s capabilities. “What he could do, most of the general officers couldn’t do,” Major Adjei-Ampofo added.

He also credited Acheampong with introducing ideas into government that, in his view, other senior officers would have struggled to implement. “The ideas he brought into government, they couldn’t do it,” he said.

Major Adjei-Ampofo said Acheampong’s influence began to change significantly when the government moved into what he described as its political phase.

He recalled a period when Acheampong worked closely with several individuals and appeared to have considerable influence and momentum. But that, he said, changed after the Union Government ( UNIGOV) political phase began and more people from outside the military establishment became involved. “But after the UNIGOV, when we entered the political phase, and then it introduced a lot of people from outside, that’s where I lost my influence,” he recalled. “I lost my influence drastically,” he added.

He also revealed that the changing political environment affected activities within Acheampong’s circle, including their prayer sessions. “And then we couldn’t even pray. We stopped the prayer sessions,” he said.

The recollection offers a glimpse into the increasingly complicated environment surrounding General Acheampong before his overthrow by General Akuffo in July 1978.