Oloye ''Oba'' ('King' in the Yoruba language, Yoruba language) is a pre-nominal honorific for kings in Yorubaland. Traditional rulers with dynasties of Yoruba origin, across the modern republics of Benin, Nigeria, and Togo, frequently make use of it. ...

Sir ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as part ...

Adeyemo Alakija, (25 May 1884 – 10 May 1952) was a Nigerian

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

and businessman. He served as a member of the Nigerian legislative council for nine years starting in 1933. In 1942, he became a member of the governor's Executive Council. Alakija was president of

Egbe Omo Oduduwa Egbé Ọmọ Odùduwà () is a Nigerian political organisation established in 1945 by Yoruba leaders in London. Its initial purpose was to unite the Yoruba people in a manner similar to the tenets of the Ibibio State Union and the Igbo Federal U ...

from 1948 until his death in 1952. Alakija's collaboration with

Herbert Macaulay Olayinka Herbert Samuel Heelas Badmus Macaulay (14 November 1864 – 7 May 1946) was a Nigerian nationalist, politician, surveyor, engineer, architect, journalist, and musician. Macaulay is considered by many as founder of Nigerian nat ...

and Egerton Shyngle early in his political career brought him prominence but after falling out with Macaulay and because of his moderate political views, his popularity began to wane until the early 1950s when he had begun to develop favour in the eyes of the public. Alakija developed close relationships with many organizations and communities among whom were the Lebanese and Syrian community in Nigeria, he was decorated with a medal of the cedars after his visit to Lebanon in 1949. He held the

chieftaincy A tribal chief, chieftain, or headman is a leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies There is no definition for "tribe". The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of western Af ...

titles of the Lisa of

Egbaland The Egba people are a subgroup of the Yoruba people, an ethnic group of western Nigeria, a majority of whom are from the central part of Ogun State, that is Ogun Central Senatorial District. Ogun Central Senatorial District comprises six local ...

and the Woje Ileri of Ile-Ife.

Early life and education

Alakija was born to the family of Marculino (sometimes called Elemeji) and Maxmilliana Assumpcao; he was the youngest of the seven children in the family. His father was of Egba ancestry and his mother was the daughter of Alfa Cyprian Akinosho Tairu of Oyo. His eldest brother Maxwell Porphyrio Assumpcao-Alakija was a barrister in

Bahia Bahia () is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Mina ...

and father in-law of Sir Olumuyiwa Jibowu, and one of his brothers (who went on to become his law partner) was Olayimika Alakija, a former member of the Nigerian Legislative Council. An elder sister, Tejumade Assumpcao, became

Olori Olori, otherwise appearing as Oloorì, is a title of honour within the chieftaincy system of the Yorubas of West Africa. It is typically translated from the Yoruba language as queen consort or, more correctly, princess consort. Usage Olori is t ...

Tejumade Alakija Ademola, Lady Ademola when she married Sir

Ladapo Ademola Oba Sir Ladapo Samuel Ademola KBE, CMG (1872–1962), also known as Ademola II, was the Alake of Abeokuta from 1920 to 1962. Before he was crowned Alake, Ademola was involved in the affairs of the Egba United Government. As a member of ...

, the Alake of Egbaland, her family's ancestral homeland. Alakija attended St Gregory's Catholic School before moving to

CMS Grammar School, Lagos The CMS Grammar School in Bariga, a suburb of Lagos in Lagos State, is the oldest secondary school in Nigeria, founded on 6 June 1859 by the Church Missionary Society. For decades it was the main source of African clergymen and administrators in ...

. He later studied at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

in the early 1930s, and became an ardent proponent for the provision of tertiary education to Nigerians during the colonial period. After finishing his secondary education, Alakija started work in the post office in 1900 and served in the civil service for ten years. He then proceeded to study Law in London, earning his qualification in 1913, and thereafter opened a law practice in Lagos. His law firm was successful but his foray into elective politics met opposition from

, a former friend of his whose politics diverged as a result of the Lagos Eleko crisis. Alakija was opposed to

Eshugbayi Eleko Oba Eshugbayi Eleko (died 1932), alias ''"Eleko of Eko"'', was the Oba of Lagos from 1901 to 1925, and from 1931 to 1932. His father was Oba Dosunmu. Eleko's struggles and legal victory over the British colonial government symbolized the struggle ...

, the

Oba of Lagos The Oba of Lagos, also known as the Eleko of Eko, is the Nigerian traditional rulers, traditional ruler (Oba (ruler), Oba) of Lagos. The Oba is a ceremonial Yoruba people, Yoruba sovereign with no political power, but is sought as a counsel ...

and the Oba's supporters including the Jamat Muslims and Macaulay. He was a candidate in the 1923

legislative elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

but lost. However, from 1933 to 1941, he was a nominated member representing Egba division in the Legislative Council. He was also the first president of the Island Club.

Career

Sir Adeyemo Alakija was a

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

entrepreneur who co-founded the ''

Daily Times of Nigeria ''The Daily Times'' was a Nigerian newspaper with headquarters in Lagos. At its peak, in the 1970s, it was one of the most successful locally-owned businesses in Africa. The paper went into decline after it was purchased by the government in 1975 ...

'' with Ernest Ikoli and Richard Barrow, who was the president of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce. The newspaper flourished with the support of advertising revenue from expatriate companies and despite its pro-government stance. Alakija assumed the chairmanship of the paper's publishing arm, the Nigerian Printing and Publishing Company. He was also a member of the governor's executive council and was president of the

Nigerian Youth Movement The Nigerian Youth Movement (NYM) was Nigeria's first genuine nationalist organization, founded in Lagos in 1934 at Stanley Orogun, with Professor Eyo Ita as the founding father and many others, including Samuel L. Akintola, Chief Shonibare, and C ...

. He was heavily influenced by the tidal waves of cultural nationalism in Nigeria during the early twentieth century. It was this self-assertiveness that led his family to abandon their assimilated Portuguese name in favour of a ''native'' one, Alakija, in 1913. Towards the end of his life it culminated in his ascending to the

aristocracy Aristocracy (; ) is a form of government that places power in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocracy (class), aristocrats. Across Europe, the aristocracy exercised immense Economy, economic, Politics, political, and soc ...

of his tribe, as he was created the Bariyun of the Ake Lineage of Egbaland and the Woje Ileri of Ile-Ife. The

Alakija, whose first name originally was Placido, was of

Afro The afro is a hair style created by combing out natural growth of afro-textured hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" '' Ebo ...

- Brazilian descent like many freed

slaves Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

resident in

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

. The groups were sometimes called Amaros. The Alakija family for a while were the most prominent Amaros in Nigeria. In Nigeria, he embraced some

traditional A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examp ...

elements of Yoruba socio-

political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

and religious history when he co-founded the Reformed Ogboni Fraternity and became the Olori Oluwo, or "Grandmaster", of the brotherhood. As a member of the confraternity, he introduced the use of

masonic Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

symbols inside the organization, such as the unblinking eye on an inverted V and three vertical shapes. He was himself also a

freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

of high rank. Alakija was influential in the development of

and later the Action Group and was donor to both organizations. Alakija died in the early hours of May 10, 1952. The night before, he had attended a dinner hosted by Sir Mobolaji Bank Anthony.

Personal life

Alakija married Christina Ayodele George in 1907. George died in 1938, and he later took on another wife, Lady Ayodele. Alakija sent most of his children from his first wife to Britain for education. One of them, his only daughter, was

Aduke Alakija Jaiyeola Aduke Alakija (March 1921 – March 2016) was a Nigerian welfare officer, lawyer and diplomat who was the country's ambassador to Sweden from 1984 to 1987. She was also a former president of the International Federation of Women Lawyers. ...

. One of his sons, Babatunde, was a British Public School High Jump champion and one of the first Africans to be enrolled for training as a pilot. Another son, Oluwole Ayodele Alakija, was the former president of WASU in London and a member of

. Chief Alakija was a founding member and president of the Island Club of Lagos and was a founding member and Vice President of the

Nigeria Football Association The Nigeria Football Federation (known as Nigeria Football Association until 2008) is Nigeria's association football, football sports governing body, governing body. It was formally launched in 1945 and formed the first Nigerian national football ...

in 1933. His grandson is

Kojo Annan Kojo Adeyemo Annan (born 25 July 1973) is a Ghanaian-Nigerian businessman and son of the late former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Early life Kojo Annan was born in Geneva, Switzerland, on 25 July 1973. Kojo Annan and his sister Ama Annan ...

, a Ghanaian businessman and son of former UN

Secretary-General Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...

Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founder a ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alakija, Adeyemo Yoruba lawyers Yoruba politicians Alumni of the University of Oxford Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Nigerian recipients of British titles 1884 births 1952 deaths Nigerian Youth Movement politicians Nigerian newspaper founders 19th-century Nigerian lawyers 20th-century Nigerian businesspeople 20th-century Nigerian politicians Yoruba businesspeople Businesspeople from Lagos CMS Grammar School, Lagos alumni Members of the Legislative Council of Nigeria 20th-century Nigerian lawyers People from colonial Nigeria St Gregory's College, Lagos alumni Lawyers from Lagos Adeyemo Nigerian Freemasons