Valentine Strasser
Encyclopedia
Valentine Esegragbo Melvine Strasser (born on April 26, 1967 in Freetown
, Sierra Leone
) served as head of state
of Sierra Leone
from 1992 to 1996. He had been a junior military officer but in 1992, he became the world's youngest Head of State when he seized power three days after his 25th birthday. He was the leading member in a group of six young Sierra Leonean soldiers who overthrew president Joseph Saidu Momoh
in the April 29, 1992 military coup.
On January 1996, after nearly four years in power, Strasser was ousted in another military coup, but this time it was his own NPRC soldiers who were not satisfied with his handling of the peace process. The coup was led by his deputy, Brigadier General
Julius Maada Bio
. Strasser was handcuffed at gunpoint by his own military bodyguards who were supposed to protect him and was immediately flown into exile
in a military helicopter
to Conakry
, Guinea
. Strasser later went to the United Kingdom
where he studied law at the University of Warwick
in Coventry
, England
. He dropped out of law school
in 1998 and briefly moved to The Gambia
.
, the capital of Sierra Leone to parents from the Creole ethnic group . Strasser was raised in Murray Town by his mother. When the young Strasser was growing up, his father who was a diamond miner and was based in Kono District
was not around most of the time to help the family. Strasser completed his secondary education at the Sierra Leone Grammar School in Freetown and graduated in 1985 at age eighteen. While in secondary school, Strasser was a gifted student in math and chemistry
.
officer at the Benguema Military Training Academy in Benguema
, a town located just outside Freetown. After his training, he rose to the rank of junior officer
in the Sierra Leone army at the young age of nineteen.
As a young ambitious soldier, Strasser was commissioned to a military barracks
in Daru
, Kailahun District
in Eastern Sierra Leone in 1987 at the age of 19, along with his childhood friend and fellow soldier, Lieutenant
Solomon Musa
. Most of the soldiers in the barracks were in their teens or early twenties and most of them came from different parts of the country.
The Revolutionary United Front
(RUF) led by Foday Sankoh
began their first attack on the 25 March 1991 in Buedu villages in Kailahun District. Strasser and other soldiers who were already in a military barracks in Kailahun, were sent to command and rout the rebellion against the RUF.
hardly supplied enough boots to the soldiers and the necessary military equipment to help fortify Strasser and his fellow soldiers in the war against the RUF. The soldiers never received their salaries on time and their welfare was hardly at the top of the government’s list of priorities.
After many appeals, warnings or threats, the young soldiers decided to march down in their combat from Kailahun
to the State House in Freetown on April 29, 1992, to protest about their setbacks in pursuing the war, demanding their outstanding salaries. The group of soldiers was led by Strasser himself and his best friend Solomon Musa
. The emergence of the soldiers into the capital city forced president Momoh to flee the country and he went into exile
in Conakry
, Guinea
. That motivated Strasser and his men to seize power, forming the NPRC, with Strasser as its leader and the Head of State
of the country.
Julius Maada Bio
, Colonel
Tom Nyuma
and Captain Komba Mondeh
. Bio quickly rose as the leader of the coup, with the support of Nyuma and Mondeh and took over as Head of State of Sierra Leone.
, where he studied law at the University of Warwick
in Coventry
, England
, but stopped his studies after a year. In 2000 Strasser left England for Gambia only to have his entry to that country denied.
track "Placid Casual," from the album Radiator
.
Freetown
Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
, Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
) served as head of state
Heads of government of Sierra Leone
The following is a list of heads of government of Sierra Leone from 1954 until 1978, when a single party constitution was adopted, and President of Sierra Leone became head of government as well.-Heads of Government of Sierra Leone:-See also:...
of Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
from 1992 to 1996. He had been a junior military officer but in 1992, he became the world's youngest Head of State when he seized power three days after his 25th birthday. He was the leading member in a group of six young Sierra Leonean soldiers who overthrew president Joseph Saidu Momoh
Joseph Saidu Momoh
Major General Joseph Saidu Momoh was the President of Sierra Leone from November, 1985 to April 29, 1992.- Biography :...
in the April 29, 1992 military coup.
On January 1996, after nearly four years in power, Strasser was ousted in another military coup, but this time it was his own NPRC soldiers who were not satisfied with his handling of the peace process. The coup was led by his deputy, Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
Julius Maada Bio
Julius Maada Bio
Brigadier Julius Maada Bio is a Sierra Leonean politician who was the military Head of State of Sierra Leone from January 16, 1996 to March 29, 1996 under the National Provisional Ruling Council military junta government....
. Strasser was handcuffed at gunpoint by his own military bodyguards who were supposed to protect him and was immediately flown into exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
in a military helicopter
Military helicopter
A military helicopter is a helicopter that is either specifically built or converted for use by military forces. A military helicopter's mission is a function of its design or conversion...
to Conakry
Conakry
Conakry is the capital and largest city of Guinea. Conakry is a port city on the Atlantic Ocean and serves as the economic, financial and cultural centre of Guinea with a 2009 population of 1,548,500...
, Guinea
Guinea
Guinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures...
. Strasser later went to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
where he studied law at the University of Warwick
University of Warwick
The University of Warwick is a public research university located in Coventry, United Kingdom...
in Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He dropped out of law school
Law school
A law school is an institution specializing in legal education.- Law degrees :- Canada :...
in 1998 and briefly moved to The Gambia
The Gambia
The Republic of The Gambia, commonly referred to as The Gambia, or Gambia , is a country in West Africa. Gambia is the smallest country on mainland Africa, surrounded by Senegal except for a short coastline on the Atlantic Ocean in the west....
.
Early life
Valentine Esegragbo Melvin Strasser was born on April 26, 1967 in the neighborhood of Murray Town in the west end of FreetownFreetown
Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
, the capital of Sierra Leone to parents from the Creole ethnic group . Strasser was raised in Murray Town by his mother. When the young Strasser was growing up, his father who was a diamond miner and was based in Kono District
Kono District
Kono District is a district in the Eastern Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is Koidu Town. The other major towns in the district include Yengema, Tombodu, Motema, Jaiama-Nimokoro and Sewafe. Kono District is the largest diamond producer in Sierra Leone.The population of Kono...
was not around most of the time to help the family. Strasser completed his secondary education at the Sierra Leone Grammar School in Freetown and graduated in 1985 at age eighteen. While in secondary school, Strasser was a gifted student in math and chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
.
Military career
On graduation from secondary school in 1985, he enlisted in the Republic of Sierra Leone Military Forces (RSLMF) at the age of eighteen and was deployed for military training as a cadetCadet
A cadet is a trainee to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. The term comes from the term "cadet" for younger sons of a noble family.- Military context :...
officer at the Benguema Military Training Academy in Benguema
Benguema
Benguema is a town in the Rural District in the Western Area of Sierra Leone. Benguema is located 25 miles from Freetown.Benguema is home to the Benguema Military Training Academy, the largest military recruit training center in Sierra Leone. The town is also home to one of Sierra Leone's largest...
, a town located just outside Freetown. After his training, he rose to the rank of junior officer
Junior officer
The term junior officer is sometimes used to make clear that an officer in a military or paramilitary unit is not in overall command. The term senior officer is reserved for the officer in overall command....
in the Sierra Leone army at the young age of nineteen.
As a young ambitious soldier, Strasser was commissioned to a military barracks
Barracks
Barracks are specialised buildings for permanent military accommodation; the word may apply to separate housing blocks or to complete complexes. Their main object is to separate soldiers from the civilian population and reinforce discipline, training and esprit de corps. They were sometimes called...
in Daru
Daru, Sierra Leone
Daru is small rural town in Kailahun District in the Eastern Province of Sierra Leone with a population of 5,958 . The town is home to one of the largest military baracks in Sierra Leone. The majority of the people in the town are from the Mende ethnic group...
, Kailahun District
Kailahun District
Kailahun District is a district in the Eastern Province of Sierra Leone. Its capital and largest city is Kailahun. The other major towns in the district include Segbwema, Koindu, Pendembu and Daru. As of 2010, the district has a population of 395,957 ....
in Eastern Sierra Leone in 1987 at the age of 19, along with his childhood friend and fellow soldier, Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Solomon Musa
Solomon Musa
Solomon Anthony Joseph Musa, also known as SAJ Musa, was an important military and political figure in the Sierra Leone Civil War.-Overview:...
. Most of the soldiers in the barracks were in their teens or early twenties and most of them came from different parts of the country.
The Revolutionary United Front
Revolutionary United Front
The Revolutionary United Front was a rebel army that fought a failed eleven-year war in Sierra Leone, starting in 1991 and ending in 2002. It later developed into a political party, which existed until 2007...
(RUF) led by Foday Sankoh
Foday Sankoh
Foday Saybana Sankoh was the leader and founder of the Sierra Leone rebel group Revolutionary United Front in the 11-year-long Sierra Leone Civil War, starting in 1991 and ending in 2002...
began their first attack on the 25 March 1991 in Buedu villages in Kailahun District. Strasser and other soldiers who were already in a military barracks in Kailahun, were sent to command and rout the rebellion against the RUF.
Presidency
During Strasser's time at the war front in Kailahun District against the RUF, the Government of Sierra Leone led by president Joseph Saidu MomohJoseph Saidu Momoh
Major General Joseph Saidu Momoh was the President of Sierra Leone from November, 1985 to April 29, 1992.- Biography :...
hardly supplied enough boots to the soldiers and the necessary military equipment to help fortify Strasser and his fellow soldiers in the war against the RUF. The soldiers never received their salaries on time and their welfare was hardly at the top of the government’s list of priorities.
After many appeals, warnings or threats, the young soldiers decided to march down in their combat from Kailahun
Kailahun
Kailahun is the capital of Kailahun District in the Eastern Province of Sierra Leone. The town lies 300 miles east of Freetown and with a population of 25,210. The population of Kailahun is largely from the Mende ethnic group and the Mende language along with the Krio language are widely spoken...
to the State House in Freetown on April 29, 1992, to protest about their setbacks in pursuing the war, demanding their outstanding salaries. The group of soldiers was led by Strasser himself and his best friend Solomon Musa
Solomon Musa
Solomon Anthony Joseph Musa, also known as SAJ Musa, was an important military and political figure in the Sierra Leone Civil War.-Overview:...
. The emergence of the soldiers into the capital city forced president Momoh to flee the country and he went into exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
in Conakry
Conakry
Conakry is the capital and largest city of Guinea. Conakry is a port city on the Atlantic Ocean and serves as the economic, financial and cultural centre of Guinea with a 2009 population of 1,548,500...
, Guinea
Guinea
Guinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures...
. That motivated Strasser and his men to seize power, forming the NPRC, with Strasser as its leader and the Head of State
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
of the country.
1996 Coup
On January 1996, after nearly four years in power, Strasser was ousted in another military coup, but this time it was his own NPRC members who were not satisfied with his handling of the peace process. The coup was led by his deputy, Brigadier GeneralBrigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
Julius Maada Bio
Julius Maada Bio
Brigadier Julius Maada Bio is a Sierra Leonean politician who was the military Head of State of Sierra Leone from January 16, 1996 to March 29, 1996 under the National Provisional Ruling Council military junta government....
, Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Tom Nyuma
Tom Nyuma
Tom Nyuma is a retired Sierra Leonean military commander and currently the chairman of Kailahun District council from the opposition Sierra Leone People's Party . He was elected as chairman of Kailahun District council on July 6, 2008 with 87% of the vote...
and Captain Komba Mondeh
Komba Mondeh
Brigadier General Komba Mondeh Brigadier General Komba Mondeh Brigadier General Komba Mondeh (born on October 31, 1966 in Freetown, Sierra Leone] is a top ranking officer in the Sierra Leonean army. Mondeh was one of six young soldiers in the Sierra Leonean Army that ousted president Joseph Saidu...
. Bio quickly rose as the leader of the coup, with the support of Nyuma and Mondeh and took over as Head of State of Sierra Leone.
Post-Presidency
Following his overthrow, Strasser left for the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, where he studied law at the University of Warwick
University of Warwick
The University of Warwick is a public research university located in Coventry, United Kingdom...
in Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, but stopped his studies after a year. In 2000 Strasser left England for Gambia only to have his entry to that country denied.
Trivia
His brief period of rule is mentioned in the Super Furry AnimalsSuper Furry Animals
Super Furry Animals are a Welsh rock band that lean towards psychedelic rock and electronic experimentation. Since their formation in Cardiff, Wales in 1993, the band has consisted of Gruff Rhys , Huw Bunford , Guto Pryce , Cian Ciaran and Dafydd Ieuan Super Furry Animals are a Welsh rock band...
track "Placid Casual," from the album Radiator
Radiator (album)
Radiator is the second album by the Super Furry Animals. It peaked at #8 on the UK charts. In 2005, it was reissued with a bonus disc of other tracks from the time....
.