Late Ondo governor Akeredolu •How he died and 27 things to know about him

Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, the governor of Ondo State, passed away in Lagos today, Wednesday, December 27. His age was sixty-seven.

The Nation reports that it was learned that State House physicians cared for him until his death due to their inability to transport him overseas.

Our correspondent was informed of Akeredolu’s passing by an Ondo State commissioner who requested to remain anonymous.

According to a trustworthy source, Akeredolu passed away in Lagos. Last week, they were searching for dialysis machines to be shipped to his covert location in Lagos.

After a three-month medical leave in Germany, Akeredolu returned to Nigeria in September.

On December 13, he took yet another medical leave, as President Bola Tinubu had instructed him to transfer authority to his deputy, Lucky Aiyedatiwa.

The medical leave was a reaction to an earlier medical procedure.

The following are 27 facts about the late Governor Akeredolu of Ondo:

1. Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu CON SAN was born in Owo on July 21, 1956, to Lady Evangelist Grace B. Akeredolu of the Aderoyiju family of Igbotu, Ese Odo, in Ondo State, and Reverend J. Ola Akeredolu of the Akeredolu family.

2. Akeredolu commenced his elementary schooling at an Owo government school. He continued his secondary education and Higher School Certificate at Aquinas College, Akure; Loyola College, Ibadan; and a comprehensive high school, Ayetoro.

3. The Yoruba meaning of his middle name, Odunayo, is “Year of happiness.”

4. He continued his legal studies at the University of Ife, which is now Obafemi Awolowo University.

and earned their diploma in 1977.

5. He was a politician and attorney from Nigeria.

6. On February 24, 2017, he took over as governor of Ondo.

7. Leukaemia is to blame for his death.

8. “Arakunrin” is his adopted prefix; “Aketi” is his nickname.

9. In 2008, he was elected President of the Nigerian Bar Association. He is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

10. In addition, Akeredolu held the position of Managing Partner at Olujinmi & Akeredolu, a law firm he co-founded with Chief Akin Olujinmi, a former Nigerian Attorney General and Minister for Justice.

11. He served as the Southwest Governors Forum chairman.

12. In 1978, he received his call to the Nigerian Bar.

13. From 1997 to 1999, Akeredolu served as Ondo State’s attorney general.

14. In 1998, he became a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. He was Chairman of the Legal Aid Council (2005–2006).

15. In November 2009, he faced allegations of corruption when the Bar Association’s third Vice-President, Welfare Secretary, and Assistant Financial Secretary circulated a petition entitled “Complaints against your fraudulent manifestations, violation of the NBA”.

16. Subsequently, the allegations against him were reviewed and dropped by the National Executive Council of the Nigerian Bar Association.

17. In November 2011, Akeredolu was among a crowd of aspirants to be the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) candidate for governor of Ondo State in the 2012 elections.

18. On 28 July 2012, Akeredolu was selected as the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) candidate for governor of Ondo State during the ACN congress in Akure.

19. His selection pitched him in a head-to-head battle with the incumbent, Olusegun Mimiko, and Olusola Oke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

20. Akeredolu promised to create 30,000 jobs in his first 100 days in office.

21. His promise nonetheless resulted in the submission of over 10,000 CVs to his campaign office.

22. Akeredolu was awarded the ticket to represent the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2016 elections for governor. On Sunday, 27 November 2016, he won the keenly contested 2016 Ondo State gubernatorial election.

23. On Sunday November 27, 2016, Akeredolu was announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission as the winner of the Ondo State governorship election.

24. He amassed 244,842 votes in the election to defeat Eyitayo Jegede with 150,380 votes and Olusola Oke with 126,889 votes. According to Professor Ganiyu Ambali, INEC Returning Officer, Akeredolu defeated two major opponents, Eyitayo Jegede of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Olusola Oke of the Alliance for Democracy (AD), to clinch victory. He was sworn in as the governor of Ondo State on 24 February 2017 in Akure, the Ondo State Capital.

25. On 21 July 2020, he was declared the Ondo governorship candidate after the primary elections under the platform of the APC, for a second term.

26. The 2020 Ondo State gubernatorial election was held on 10 October 2020.

27. Akeredolu won re-election for a second term, defeating PDP