The death has been announced of Ghana’s former first lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings at the age of 76.
Ghanaweb in a report on Thursday said late President Jerry Rawlings’s widow died at the Ridge Hospital in Accra after she was taken ill for several week and put under medical supervision.
The Ghanaian government has also issued a statement confirming the death of the former first lady., coming almost five years after her husband Jerry Rawlings’ passing in November 2020.
They are surivived by four children.
Accompanied by her children, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings was reportedly last seen on September 18 this year attending the funeral rites for the Assantehemaa Nana Konadu Yaidom III.
It was reported on Thursday afternoon that people were beginning to gather at the Rawlings residence in Accra following news of Nana Konadu’s passing.
She was first lady of Ghana from 1981 to 2001 during her hussband’s stint as both military leader and later as civilian president when multiparty democracy returned to the country in the early 1990s.
As founder of the National Democratic Party (NDC), she was a prominent political figure during this period and became active through her foundaiton for gender activism to improve the lives of women and girls in Ghana.
She once declared that her mission was to help meet the aspirations of Ghanaians above political considerations and became the first woman to run for the Ghanaian presidency in 2016.
The former first lady who founded the “My desire is to see the emancipation of women at every level of development to enable them to contribute and benefit from the socio-economic and political progress of the country.
Some described her as a woman of courage and impeccable character who was able to bridge political divisions during her twenty years as Ghana’s first lady.
Other said she was the voice of peace and moderation in the often toxic world of Ghanaian politics.
In a glowing tribute to her, the MP for Takoradi, Mr Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah described her as a force who has left an indelible impact on women’s empowerment and Ghana’s development which cannot be erased.
WN/as/APA