Nevertheless, Ghana is still a backward agricultural country, with agricultural population accounting for more than 80% of the national population, and its economy still depends on the export income of traditional cash crop cocoa (accounting for about 60% of export income). From 65438 to 0960, nkrumah began to carry out radical social and economic reforms, which was called "African Socialism". In an attempt to change Ghana's backward appearance in a short time and improve people's living standards quickly. He devoted himself to the industrialization of Ghana in order to get rid of its weak position in the international trade system. He is determined to make Ghana economically independent, trying to cancel imports and reduce dependence on foreign capital, technology and material products by producing everything Ghana needs at home. He nationalized industrial enterprises, plantations and shops, but the result was disastrous. It means that production is carried out by the government-whether the government has the ability and whether the goods produced locally are more expensive than those imported. However, his efforts failed. Due to lack of funds and support, Ghana's agriculture declined rapidly. At the same time, he failed to establish a real industrial system in Ghana. Nationalization, cooperation and large-scale economic development plan have destroyed the original economic order; Many honor construction projects catering to nkrumah's prosperity have exhausted the national treasury and caused a huge fiscal deficit. 1966 foreign debt reached 10 billion dollars, and the economic situation deteriorated.
Due to soaring prices, the number of unemployed people has increased sharply, the living standards of most working people and public officials have declined, corruption and power struggle within the ruling party and government are rampant, and the broad masses of the people are strongly dissatisfied, resulting in political turmoil and social turmoil. At the same time, the radical reform carried out by nkrumah also touched the interests of traditional feudal forces and the national bourgeoisie and became the target of their attacks. Instead of pulling back from the brink, nkrumah stepped up efforts to suppress criticism and severely suppressed the opposition. As a result, there have been many attempts to assassinate the president, and there have also been words and deeds of dissatisfaction with the president within the armed forces and security forces. In order to strengthen security, nkrumah hired a group of foreign bodyguards, including Cubans, South Africans and Arabs, expanded the presidential guard to more than 1000, and hired military advisers from the Soviet Union and the GDR to train them, making them an elite force. Watchtower, The Dark Castle and basement were built in the presidential palace, which became a solid fortress. At that time, a wave of military coups took place in the newly independent countries on the African continent, which gave nkrumah a premonition of the coming crisis. He took a series of measures to prevent the coup, such as replacing senior officers of non-lineal armed forces and security forces, expanding the militia loyal to him, strengthening social order through its "Kingsguard"-National Security Bureau and Presidential Guard, and weakening the role of the police. This has created an uneasy atmosphere among the armed forces and security forces.
Some officers in Ghana's armed forces are not satisfied with nkrumah's disastrous political performance, but they are particularly opposed to his establishment of the second armed militia, believing that he is trying to weaken the armed forces. As early as 1965, there appeared a secret organization against nkrumah-"Revolutionary Committee", whose main leaders were Brigadier General Kotoka of the Second Brigade and Brigadier General Oakland of the First Brigade. In view of nkrumah's prestige at home and abroad and his direct control over some armed forces, they are biding their time.
1966 On February 2 1 day, at the invitation of President Ho Chi Minh, nkrumah left Accra for Hanoi for an official goodwill visit to Vietnam, and stopped at Beijing. This is the first time that a black African head of state has visited a country that is waging a war to resist the United States and save the nation, with 88 people accompanying him. This grand visit has attracted Ghana's attention. At the same time, General Avril, nkrumah's confidant and chief of staff in charge of Ghana's armed forces, also went to Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, to attend the meeting. Two politicians in charge of military and political power visited at the same time, and there was a power vacuum in Ghana. The "Revolutionary Committee" thought it was a golden opportunity and decided to launch a coup. In the name of military exercises, they mobilized troops to the suburbs of Accra, the capital, including a paratrooper unit, a mechanized unit and an infantry battalion. Although the redeployment was public, its coup plan was not discovered by nkrumah's intelligence system. Ghana's armed forces, with a strength of no more than 6.5438+0 million, are mainly composed of the army and have two infantry brigades under their jurisdiction. There is also a security force mainly composed of police, about 9,000 people. The participation of the 1st Infantry Brigade and the 2nd Infantry Brigade in the coup was enough to control the whole armed forces.
1On the night of February 23rd, 966, the coup troops fought fiercely with the armed forces loyal to nkrumah in the capital. Militia organizations in various regions expressed their opposition to the coup, and nkrumah, who was visiting abroad, announced that he would return to China to suppress the "reactionary rebellion". Although the main leaders of the Presidential Guard have visited the country with nkrumah, the Guard always remains vigilant and immediately strikes back when it finds the rebel attack. With their strong fortifications, they repelled the rebels' attacks again and again, causing great losses to the rebels. They are waiting for external assistance and the return of President nkrumah. This once made the coup leaders helpless and turned to the militia. Although the militia opposed the coup, due to the lack of unified command, the resistance in various regions was defeated by the coup forces. At the same time, the coup forces blocked the airport and set up obstacles to prevent nkrumah's plane from suddenly landing. After the disintegration of the militia, the coup leaders mobilized troops and artillery to launch a new attack on the presidential palace, and heavy artillery destroyed the fortifications of the presidential palace. It was not until February 28 that the coup forces completely occupied the presidential palace that the coup declared its final victory. By March 2, nkrumah basically lost hope of returning to Ghana to restore power and went into exile.
According to the evidence provided by the declassified documents of the former Soviet National Security Council (KGB) and the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), US President lyndon baines johnson and his government participated in the coup to overthrow President nkrumah, mainly because the US government realized the socialist tendency of the nkrumah regime and his anti-western radicalism.