Celestino Rocha da Costa

Celestino Rocha da Costa (25 September 1938 – 23 December 2010)[1] was a prime minister of São Tomé and Príncipe.[2] He held the post from 8 January 1988 to 7 February 1991.[3][4] He was the last head of a single party Movement for the Liberation of São Tomé and Príncipe (MLSTP) government.[5]

Celestino Rocha da Costa
2nd Prime Minister of São Tomé and Príncipe
In office
8 January 1988 – 7 February 1991
PresidentManuel Pinto da Costa
Preceded byMiguel Trovoada (1979)
Succeeded byDaniel Daio
Personal details
Born25 September 1938
Overseas Province of São Tomé and Príncipe, Portugal
Died23 December 2010 (aged 72)
Lisbon, Portugal
Political partyMovement for the Liberation of São Tomé and Príncipe

Biography

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He became member of the Movement of the Liberation of São Tomé (MLSTP) after independence in 1976 and was a single party at the time. He first worked for the Ministry of Justice. From the beginning of 1986, he was Minister of Education, Labour and Social Affairs.

In January 1988, a constitutional amendment retained the post of a Prime Minister, on 8 January, he became Prime Minister up to 7 February 1991. His government included those that were in exile and later Carlos da Graça as Foreign Minister. In February and March 1988, his army cracked down coup attempts in Gabon.

After the introduction of democracy in 1990, in fall 1990, his party became the MLSTP-PSD, he ran for the 1991 legislative elections on 20 January and his party won second place with 30.5% of the votes with 21 out of 55 seats and went into opposition. His post as Prime Minister was succeeded by Daniel Lima dos Santos Daio.

He died in Lisbon, Portugal in 2010, aged 72.

References

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  1. ^ Morreu o ex-primeiro ministro Celestino Rocha da Costa (in Portuguese)
  2. ^ "Sao Tome Accuses Ex-premier of Embezzling Millions of Dollars". Daily News. 28 August 1991. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  3. ^ Dieter Nohlen; Michael Krennerich; Bernhard Thibaut (1999). Elections in Africa: a data handbook. Oxford University Press. p. 751. ISBN 978-0-19-829645-4. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  4. ^ John Stewart (2006). African states and rulers. McFarland & Co. p. 196. ISBN 978-0-7864-2562-4. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  5. ^ Lloyd-Jones, Stewart; António, Costa Pinto (2004). The Last Empire: Thirty Years of Portuguese Decolonization. UK: Intellect Ltd. ISBN 1841501093.
Preceded by
Post Abolished
Prime Minister of São Tomé and Príncipe
1988–1991
Succeeded by