Victor Coker-Appiah
{{Short description|Ghanaian soldier}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific_prefix = Colonel
| name = Victor Coker-Appiah
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| office = Brong-Ahafo Regional Commissioner
| term_start = 1974
| term_end = 30 April 1975
| president = Colonel Acheampong
| predecessor = Commander J. A. Kyeremeh
| successor = Lt. Col. O. K. Abrefa
| order2 =
| office2 = Commissioner for Works and Housing
| term_start2 = 1972
| term_end2 = 1974
| president2 = Colonel Acheampong
| predecessor2 = Major Roger Felli
| successor2 = Colonel R. E. A. Kotei
| order3 =
| office3 = Commissioner for Local Government
| term_start3 = 1972
| term_end3 = 1972
| president3 = Colonel Acheampong
| predecessor3 = Major General N. A. Aferi
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| education = Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
| alma_mater = Achimota School
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| profession = Soldier
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| allegiance = Ghana Armed Forces
| branch = Ghana Army
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| rank = Colonel
| unit = Field Engineers Regiment
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Victor Coker-Appiah was a Ghanaian soldier and politician. He served in various capacities in the National Redemption Council (NRC) military government led by Colonel I. K. Acheampong which overthrew the civilian elected government led by Kofi Abrefa Busia.
Education and training
Coker-Appiah attended Achimota School for his secondary education. After joining the Ghana Army, he became one of the first Ghanaians to be commissioned into the Engineers Regiment. He was also one of the first Ghanaians to train at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst for between 1957 and 1958. He was promoted to the rank of Major in August 1965.{{cite book |last1=Baynham |first1=Simon |title=The military and politics in Nkrumah's Ghana |date=1988 |publisher=Westview Press |location=Boulder |isbn=0813370639 |url=https://archive.org/download/nkrumahs-ghana/nkrumah%27s%20ghana.pdf |access-date=9 October 2022}}
Politics
Coker-Appiah is reported to be one of the officers who was involved in the overthrow of President Kwame Nkrumah's Convention People's Party (CPP) government. He was responsible for arresting the Director of Military Intelligence among others. He was the commander of the Field Engineers Regiment based at Wajir Barracks at Teshie in Accra at the time.
During the era of the National Liberation Council (NLC) military government, Coker-Appiah was the administrative head for the Western Region in 1969. He was instrumental in averting a strike by staff of the Prestea State Farms Corporation in the region during this period.{{cite journal |editor1-last=Ofori |editor1-first=Henry |title=Coker-Appiah Averts Strike |journal=Daily Graphic |date=6 June 1969 |issue=5,810 |page=9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1Wr0WHLUAyIC&dq=%22victor+coker-appiah%22&pg=PA9 |access-date=9 October 2022 |publisher=Graphic Communications Group |location=Accra |language=en}}
Following the abortive attempt in April 1967 to overthrow the NLC government, Coker-Appiah led investigations that resulted in the public execution of the leaders.
Colonel Acheampong initially appointed him as Commissioner for Local Government.{{cite book |title=Know your commissioners. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/404100564 |publisher=Public Relations Dept., Accra |access-date=9 October 2022 |language=English |date=1972|oclc=404100564 }} He was moved shortly afterwards to be the head for the Ministry of Works and Housing. In 1974, he was transferred to the Brong-Ahafo region where he became the Regional Commissioner.{{cite journal |editor1-last=Nkrumah |editor1-first=I. K. |title=Indian Hemp Trafficking - Severe Penalties for Culprits |journal=Daily Graphic |date=6 December 1974 |issue=7513 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FnYJf1YIyyQC&dq=%22victor+coker-appiah%22&pg=PP16 |access-date=9 October 2022 |publisher=Graphic Communications Group |location=Accra |language=en}}{{cite web |title=Our army and national development: The story of an officer and a gentleman |url=https://www.graphic.com.gh/features/opinion/our-army-and-national-development-the-story-of-an-officer-and-a-gentleman.html |website=Graphic Online |publisher=Graphic Communications Group Limited |access-date=9 October 2022 |location=Accra |language=en-gb |date=6 February 2015}}
In April 1975, he was removed from the NRC government and later appointed the military attaché to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
References
{{Reflist}}
{{s-start}}
{{s-off}}
{{s-bef|before=Kwabena Kwakye Anti}}
{{s-ttl|title=Commissioner for Local Government |years=1972 – 1972}}
{{s-aft|after=Nathan Apea Aferi}}
{{s-bef|before=Major Roger Felli}}
{{s-ttl|title=Commissioner for Works and Housing |years=1972 – 1974}}
{{s-aft|after=Robert Kotei}}
{{s-bef|before=S. D. Dombo}}
{{s-ttl|title=Brong-Ahafo Regional Commissioner |years=1974 – 1975}}
{{s-aft|after=Lt. Col. Selormey}}
{{s-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coker-Appiah, Victor}}
Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:Local government ministers of Ghana