Isaac William Benneh | |
|---|---|
| Minister for Rural Industries | |
| In office 15 April 1965 –24 February 1966 | |
| President | Dr. Kwame Nkrumah |
| Preceded by | John Young Ghann |
| Succeeded by | Ministry abolished |
| Member of Parliament for Berekum Constituency [1] | |
| In office 25 April 1957 –24 February 1966 | |
| Preceded by | J. G. Awuah |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Hene Addae |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 12 May 1912 |
| Citizenship | Ghanaian |
| Political party | Convention People's Party |
| Children | George Benneh,Emmanuel Yaw Benneh |
Isaac William Benneh was a Ghanaian politician. He served as a minister of state in various portfolios in the First Republic from 1960 to 1966. He also served as the member of the Berekum constituency from 1957 to 1966. [2] [3]
Benneh was born on 12 May 1912 at Berekum in the Bono Region of Ghana. [4] He had his elementary education at Berekum and Abetifi where he obtained his Standard 7 certificate in 1930. [4]
After receiving two years training with Cadbury and Fry Company,Benneh became a cocoa broker for the Company in 1933. [4] He rose through the ranks and became a supervisor of the company in 1951. [5] While working with the company,he also run his own transport business. [5]
Upon the death of J. G. Awuah,the then sitting Convention People's Party (CPP) member for the Berekum constituency,the Berekum seat was vacant and a by-election was held on 25 April 1957. [6] Benneh contested for the seat and won on the ticket of the CPP. [7] After winning the election,he was appointed General Manager of the Ghana Farmer's Cooperative. [8] In October 1959,he was a appointed Ministerial Secretary to the Ministry of Economic Affairs and held this appointment until June,1960. In August 1960,he was transferred to the Ministry of Labour,Co-operatives and Social Welfare serving in that same capacity. That same year,Benneh was elevated to the rank of a minister of state given the Portfolio of Education. He held this appointment for a period of four years until he was transferred to the Ministry of Communications. [9] On 15 April 1965 he was appointed Minister for Rural Industries,replacing John Young Ghann who had then been made Minister for Internal Trade. [10] [11] Benneh remained in this capacity until 24 February 1966 when the Nkrumah government was overthrown.
Benneh was married to Mrs. Lucy Benneh (née Ofori-Atta) in 1959. [12] [13] Lucy was a clerical officer in the Ministry of Labour from 1957 until 1958 when she was moved to the Broadcasting Department working in the same capacity. She however,resigned in 1961. [13] Prior to his marriage to Lucy,Benneh had married ten times and had forty-two children with the ten women. [13] [14] He was father of the Ghanaian academic and university administrator,George Benneh who served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana from 1992 to 1996. [15]
He was also the father of Emmanuel Yaw Benneh,who was a Law Professor with the University of Ghana. [16] He is known to be deceased. [17]
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