Francisco Macías Nguema (born
1 January 1924 as Mez-m Ngueme - died
September 29,
1979) was the first
President of
Equatorial Guinea, from
1968 until his overthrow in
1979. He rose to the position of
mayor of
Mongomo under the
Spanish colonial government, and later served as a member of the territorial parliament. He was elected president in two rounds before independence in 1968. During his presidency, his country was nicknamed "the
Auschwitz of Africa", and became notorious for political executions and virulent anti-Spanish radio speeches. The country's pre-independence prime minister,
Bonifacio Ondó Edu, was starved and executed in prison shortly after Macías came to power. Other officials, including a former vice president, "committed suicide" while in detention.
See more at Wikipedia.org...