Gnassingbé Eyadéma
Gnassingbé Eyadéma (French pronunciation: [ɲasɛ̃ɡbe ɛjadema]; born Étienne Eyadéma Gnassingbé, 26 December 1935 – 5 February 2005) was a Togolese military officer and politician who was the president of Togo from 1967 until his death in 2005, after which he was immediately succeeded by his son, Faure Gnassingbé.
Gnassingbé Eyadéma | |
|---|---|
Eyadéma in 1972 | |
| 3rd President of Togo | |
| In office 14 April 1967 – 5 February 2005 | |
| Prime Minister | Joseph Kokou Koffigoh Edem Kodjo Kwassi Klutse Eugene Koffi Adoboli Agbéyomé Kodjo Koffi Sama |
| Preceded by | Kléber Dadjo |
| Succeeded by | Faure Gnassingbé |
| Chairperson of ECOWAS | |
| In office 9 November 1975 – 1 June 1978 | |
| Preceded by | Yakubu Gowon |
| Succeeded by | Olusegun Obasanjo |
| In office 3 June 1980 – 2 April 1981 | |
| Preceded by | Léopold Sédar Senghor |
| Succeeded by | Siaka Stevens |
| In office 7 July 1999 – 8 September 1999 | |
| Preceded by | Abdulsalami Abubakar |
| Succeeded by | Alpha Oumar Konaré |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 26 December 1935 Pya, French Togoland |
| Died | 5 February 2005 (aged 69) near Tunis, Tunisia |
| Political party | Rally of the Togolese People |
| Spouse | Véronica Massan |
| Children | Faure Gnassingbé Kpatcha Gnassingbé |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Togo |
| Branch/service | Togolese Armed Forces |
| Years of service | 1958-1987 |
| Rank | Général de division |
Eyadéma participated in two successful military coups, in January 1963 and January 1967, and became president on 14 April 1967. As president, he created a political party, the Rally of the Togolese People (RPT), and headed an anti-communist single-party regime until the early 1990s, when reforms leading to multiparty elections began. Although his rule was seriously challenged by the events of the early 1990s, he ultimately consolidated power again and won multiparty presidential elections in 1993, 1998 and 2003; the opposition boycotted the 1993 election and denounced the 1998 and 2003 election results as fraudulent. At the time of his death, Eyadéma was the longest-serving ruler in Africa.
According to a 2018 study, "Gnassingbé Eyadema's rule rested on repression, patronage, and a bizarre leadership cult."