Guitar Boy
The attempted counter-coup against the NLC was instigated by three junior officers of the Ghana Armed Forces: Lt. Samuel Arthur, Lt. Moses Yeboah and 2nd Lt. Osei-Poku. With the support of several senior officers, including Warrant Officer George Ofosu, and 119 soldiers of the 2nd Recce (Reconnaissance) Regiment, the coup-makers plotted to overthrow the NLC government.
The operation was named "Guitar Boy", after a popular song by Nigerian musician Victor Uwaifo, in which the West African water goddess, the Mami Wata, had given him a guitar and asked him to make good music. After the attempted coup, "Guitar Boy" was banned by the NLC from radio airplay in Ghana.
Lt. Gen. Kotoka was shot and killed by Lt. Yeboah at Ghana International Airport. The airport was later renamed Kotoka International Airport in honour of the General, and the spot on which he was killed now houses a life-size memorial statue.
Lt. Arthur attempted to gain access to the ammunition depot of the 1st Recce Regiment. In a struggle for the keys, Captain Avevor – the depot's quartermaster – was shot and killed.
For their role in the deaths, Yeboah and Arthur were executed by firing squad at a military range near Labadi Beach. The other conspirator, Osei-Poku, received a thirty-year prison sentence, and the other members of the regiment also received prison terms.
Read more about this topic: Operation Guitar Boy
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