Victor Owusu

Victor Owusu (1923 - 16 December 2000) is a former Ghanaian politician and lawyer. He has also served as Attorney General and Justice minister as well as foreign minister on two separate occasions.

Early life

Victor trained as a lawyer. He was a prominent member of the National Liberation Movement which stood for the 1956 elections in the Gold Coast prior to elections. [cite web| url=http://africanelections.tripod.com/gh.html#1956_Legislative_Assembly_Election |title=Elections in Ghana - 17 July 1956 Legislative Assembly Election |accessdate=2007-04-12 |work=A database of election results in Sub-Saharan Africa |publisher=Albert C. Nunley] During the First Republic, he was detained under the Preventive Detention Act (1958) by the Kwame Nkrumah government. He was released after the February 241966 coup d'état which brought in the military National Liberation Council (NLC) government. He was appointed Attorney General and Minister for Justice by the NLC.

In Government

He was a member of the Progress Party that won the 1969 elections [cite web|url=http://africanelections.tripod.com/gh.html#1969_National_Assembly_Election |title=Elections in Ghana - 29 August 1969 National Assembly Election |accessdate=2007-04-12 |work=A database of election results in Sub-Saharan Africa |publisher=Albert C. Nunley] . Dr. Kofi Abrefa Busia appointed him foreign minister twice in the Second Republic. The first was in 1969 and the second was between 1969 and 1971. On both occasions, he took over the portfolio from Patrick Dankwa Anin who also served twice. [cite web|url=http://rulers.org/fm2.html |title=Foreign ministers E-K - Ghana |accessdate=2007-04-12 |author=B. Schemmel |work=Lists of heads of state of government and ministers of various countries |publisher=Rulers.org] The Second Republic came to an end with the January 13, 1972 coup led by General (then Colonel) I.K. Acheampong.

Leader of the opposition

Victor Owusu was a founding member and leader of the Popular Front Party in the Third Republic. He was the runner-up to Dr. Hilla Limann of the People's National Party (PFP) in the 1979 Ghanaian presidential elections with 38% of the votes after the second round of voting. [cite web|url=http://africanelections.tripod.com/gh.html#1979_Presidential_Election |title=Elections in Ghana - June & July 1979 Presidential Election |accessdate=2007-04-12 |work=A database of election results in Sub-Saharan Africa |publisher=Albert C. Nunley] After the election, the PFP merged with other opposition parties to form the All People's Party (AFP) under the leadership of Victor Owusu.cite news |url=http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=13508 |title= State burial for Victor Owusu |accessdate=2007-05-04 |work=General News of Friday, 9 February 2001 |publisher=Ghana Home Page] The AFP, along with other political parties, were banned after the December 31, 1981 coup by the Provisional National Defence Council led by Flt. Lt. Jerry Rawlings.

Later life

From 1991 until his death, Victor Owusu lived in Putney, London, UK. He died in London. He was married to Agnes Owusu.

Trivia

John Kufuor, president of Ghana, said he had practised as a junior in Victor Owusu's law firm.

References

ee also

*Minister for Foreign Affairs (Ghana)

s-ttl|title=Attorney General and Minister of Justice | years=1966 – 1969 [cite web |url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/17828?view=synopsis |title=The FROST PROGRAMME: FRANK COUSINS/GEOFFREY BING & VICTOR OWUSU |accessdate=2007-05-04 |year=1967 |work=BFI Film & TV Database |publisher=British Film Institute]

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NAME=Owusu, Victor
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SHORT DESCRIPTION=Lawyer, politician and former attorney general and foreign minister of Ghana
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