Before independence, he was a prominent union leader and founded the Rassemblement Démocratique Africain party. In 1956, he was elected mayor of Conakry, the capital. While the country was still under French administration, he became prime minister on May 14, 1957, and he subsequently became president upon independence on October 2, 1958.
While he initially pursued a socialist agenda, he became very dictatorial towards the end of his career, and thousands of Guineans fled the country during his rule.
He died while undergoing heart surgery in Cleveland, Ohio, in the United States.
Quote
"We prefer poverty in liberty to riches in slavery."
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