José Eduardo dos Santos Obituary

José Eduardo dos Santos was an Angolan politician who served as the president of Angola from 1979 to 2017.

As president, Jos Eduardo was also the commander in chief of the Angolan Armed Forces and President of the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), the party that has ruled Angola since it gained independence in 1975.

He was the second longest-serving president in Africa, surpassed only by President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea, who took power less than two months before dos Santos.

Dos Santos became wealthy when he first took power but only began amassing his incredibly large assets during and after the Angolan civil wars. When the ceasefire occurred and large portions of the economy were being partially privatised, he took control of several emerging companies and industries. He also helped arrange similar takeovers of several other natural resource industries.

Dos Santos died at Teknon Medical Centre in Barcelona on July 8, 2022, at the age of 79. He had a cardiorespiratory arrest on June 23 that year and was in cancer treatment for several years before his death.