President John Dramani Mahama has opened up about a deeply personal chapter of his childhood, disclosing that he suffered recurring nightmares as a teenager following the detention of his father in the aftermath of Ghana’s 1966 coup.

He shared the emotional account while addressing dignitaries at the opening of the 2026 Judicial Year and the 20th anniversary celebration of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights in Arusha, Tanzania.

The event brought together jurists, legal scholars, policymakers and human rights advocates from across the continent to reflect on the progress and challenges of justice delivery in Africa.

In a speech underscoring the importance of judicial independence and the protection of human rights, President Mahama recounted the traumatic impact his father’s detention had on him as a young boy.

“As a teenager, I often dreamt of my father standing before judges awaiting the decision on his fate. He was detained once and faced the risk twice more, and this fear led to recurring nightmares about him,” he said.

“My father was a minister in Kwame Nkrumah’s government, and immediately after the coup, he and others were asked to report to the police station for their own safety. He was interrogated and taken into custody for over a year.

“By 1974, Ghana experienced another coup led by Colonel I.K. Acheampong. By that time, my father had become a private citizen, working as a rice farmer and agribusinessman with no involvement in politics.”

President Mahama’s father served as a minister under Ghana’s first President, Kwame Nkrumah, whose government was overthrown on 24 February 1966.

Following the coup, several officials of the Nkrumah administration were rounded up, interrogated and, in some cases, detained for extended periods.