Ghana, Africa and the whole world was put into a state of grief exactly seven (7) years ago today July 24, 2012.
It was a Tuesday afternoon when news broke that sitting President John Evans Fiifi Atta-Mills had died after he was rushed to the 37 Military Hospital in Accra.
We celebrate the life and his legacy of President John Evans Fiifi Atta Mills today Wednesday July 24, 2017, as part of his 7th anniverary of his untimely passing.
Watch an extensive interview with the late Atta Mills:
Watch Musician Union of Ghana(MUSIGA) All Stars tribute song for the late Atta Mills:
Watch scenes from Atta Mills' funeral in Accra:
A Brief Profile of The Late Atta Mills
John Evans Fiifi Atta Mills (21 July 1944 – 24 July 2012) was a Ghanaian politician and legal scholar who served as President of Ghana from 2009 to 2012. He was inaugurated on 7 January 2009, having defeated the ruling party candidate Nana Akufo-Addo in the 2008 election.[2] Previously he was Vice-President from 1997 to 2001 under President Jerry Rawlings, and he stood unsuccessfully in the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections as the candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC). He is the first Ghanaian head of state to die in office.
Mills was born on 21 July 1944 in Tarkwa, in the Western Region of Ghana. A member of the Fante ethnic group, he hailed from the town of Ekumfi Otuam in the Mfantsiman East constituency of the Central Region of Ghana. He had his primary and middle school education at Huni ValleyMethodist Primary School and Komenda Methodist Middle School respectively. He then proceeded to the prestigious Achimota School for his secondary education, where he completed the Ordinary and Advanced-Level Certificates in 1961 and 1963 respectively, and the University of Ghana, Legon, where he completed a bachelor of law degree, LLB and a professional law certificate in 1967.
Mills studied at the London School of Economics and Political Science where he obtained an LLM in 1968 and earned a PhD in Law at the School of Oriental and African Studies School of Law, part of the federal University of London, after completing his doctoral thesis in the field of taxation and economic development in 1971 at the age of 27. Even during his career in politics, he was sometimes called by the nickname The Prof, a reference to his long academic career. His political supporters also called him Asomdweehene meaning 'King of Peace' in the Akan language.
He was married to Ernestina Naadu Mills,an educator, and had a son, Sam Kofi Atta Mills.He was raised a Protestantin the Methodist tradition. He was a distant cousin of the prominent Gold Coast lawyer, Thomas Hutton-Mills, Jr. He was a good friend to T. B. Joshua of The Synagogue, Church of All Nations in Lagos, Nigeria and regularly visited his church. He said, following his inauguration, that Joshua had prophesied that it would take him three elections to win the presidency and that the result would be released in January.
As a sports administrator, he contributed to the Ghana Hockey Association, National Sports Council of Ghana, Ghana Olympic Committee and Accra Hearts of Oak Sporting Club. He was one time the chairman. He enjoyed field hockey and swimming, and once played for the national hockey team (he remained a member of the Veterans Hockey Team until his death). He was also a board member of Hearts of Oak, the former chairman of the Black Starsmanagement team and a Manchester United fan.
Source: Peacefmonline.com
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