Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa (born 12 January 1965) is a Nigerian businessman and politician who has served as

governor of Ondo State The governor of Ondo State is the head of government of Ondo State in Nigeria. The governor is the head of the executive branch of the Ondo State Government. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws and the power to either approve or veto b ...

since 2023. He previously served as deputy governor of Ondo State from 2021 to 2023 under Governor

Rotimi Akeredolu Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu (; 21 July 1956 – 27 December 2023) was a Nigerian lawyer and politician who served as governor of Ondo State from 2017 until his death in 2023. His adopted prefix was "Arakunrin", while his nickname was "Ake ...

. He is a former commissioner of

Niger Delta Development Commission The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) is a federal government agency established by former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo in the year 2000, with the sole mandate of developing the oil-rich Niger Delta region of Nigeria. In Septemb ...

. On 13 December 2023, Aiyedatiwa became acting governor following the departure of Governor

on medical leave. He had previously served as acting governor from June to September 2023 when Akeredolu was on medical leave.

Early life

Aiyedatiwa was born on 12 January 1965, he hails from Obe-Nla, an oil-bearing community in

Ilaje Ìlàje is a Local Government Area in Ondo State, South-West Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Igbokoda. The Ilajes are a distinct migratory coastal linguistic group of Yoruba peoples spread along the coastal belts of Ondo, Ogun, ...

Local Government Area of

Ondo State Ondo () is a States of Nigeria, state in Points of the compass, southwestern Nigeria. It was created on 3 February 1976 from the former Western State (Nigeria), Western State. Ondo borders Ekiti State to the north, Kogi State to the northeast fo ...

Background

Aiyedatiwa had his primary education at Saint Peter's UNA (now FAC) Primary School, Obe Nla/Obe Adun, in

LGA of Ondo State between 1970 and 1976. He had his secondary education at Ikosi High School, Ketu,

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 ...

, in 1982. In 1986, he obtained the Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) in economics and government from Lagos State College of Education (now Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education), Ijanikin, Lagos; he later attended the

University of Ibadan The University of Ibadan (UI) is a public university located in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Initially founded as the University College Ibadan in 1948, it maintained its affiliation with the University of London. In 1962, it became an independe ...

for an advanced diploma in business administration in the year 2001. He became an alumnus of

Lagos Business School Lagos Business School (LBS) is the graduate business school of Pan-Atlantic University and is owned by the Pan-Atlantic University Foundation (PAUF), a non-profit foundation registered in Nigeria. LBS was founded by three professionals - Juan Ma ...

– Pan Atlantic University, Lekki, Lagos where he obtained postgraduate certification in chief executive education (CEP) in business management in 2009. In 2013, he obtained a master's degree in business administration (MBA) from the

University of Liverpool The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a Public university, public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University (United Kingdom), Victoria University, it received Ro ...

, United Kingdom.

Career

Aiyedatiwa worked as an inventory/store officer at Scoa Assembly Plant Plc, Apapa, Lagos, between 1982 and 1983. In 1987 he was assistant head teacher at Reliance International Schools, Ijokodo, Ibadan. In 1990, he became a marketing officer at Universal Pharmaceutical Supply Co. Ltd, Ikeja, Lagos. In 1992, he was an assistant investment analyst, Global Trust Limited, Gbagada, Lagos; he was general merchandise manager, Biz Mart Nigeria Limited, Lagos Island, Lagos, 1994. He is the MD/CEO of Blue Wall Group of Companies which he established in 1996 which includes; Blue Wall Nigeria Ltd, a trading company, Blue Wall BDC Nigeria Ltd, a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) licensed foreign exchange trading company and Blue Wall Safety Travels and Tours, an IATA licensed travel agency and logistic company.

Early political career

Aiyedatiwa joined active politics in 2011 as a card-carrying member of the

Action Congress of Nigeria The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), formerly known as Action Congress (AC), was a Nigerian political party formed via the merger from the coming together of a faction of Alliance for Democracy, the Justice Party, the Advance Congress of D ...

(ACN), which later merged with other political parties and became the

All Progressives Congress The All Progressives Congress (APC) is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Nigeria, along with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Founded on 6 February 2013 from a merger of Nigeria's three largest opposition parties, t ...

(APC). He was one of the National Delegates from Ondo State at the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Convention at Abuja in 2014. He contested for the Federal House of Representative for Ilaje/Ese-Odo Federal Constituency in the 2015 Presidential and National Assembly General Election.

Niger Delta Development Commission

Aiyedatiwa served as the federal commissioner who represented Ondo State on the Board of

from 2018 to 2019.

Ondo State Government

Aiyedatiwa was selected as the running mate of the governor of Ondo State

in the

2020 Ondo State gubernatorial election The 2020 Ondo State gubernatorial election was held on 10 October 2020. Incumbent All Progressives Congress, APC governor Rotimi Akeredolu won re-election for a second term, defeating People's Democratic Party (Nigeria), PDP Eyitayo Jegede, Zeni ...

. On 11 October 2020, Akeredolu and Aiyedatiwa were elected governor and deputy governor of Ondo State as announced by the

Independent National Electoral Commission Independent National Electoral Commission may refer to: *Independent National Electoral Commission (Burundi) *Independent National Electoral Commission (Democratic Republic of the Congo) *Independent National Electoral Commission (Guinea) The Inde ...

. On 25 February 2021, they were sworn into office as governor and deputy governor of Ondo State respectively. Aiyedatiwa became acting governor of Ondo State on 13 December 2023, as Akeredolu left for end-stage leukaemia treatment. He was previously acting governor from June to September 2023 when Akeredolu was on medical leave.

Governorship

On 27 December 2023, Akeredolu died and Aiyedatiwa was sworn in as governor. Aiyedatiwa was declared the winner of the 2024 Ondo State gubernatorial election, held on 16 November 2024, defeating his closest rival, Agboola Ajayi of the Peoples Democratic Party.

Aides

Sequel to Aiyedatiwa’s inauguration as the Ondo State Governor, he appointed aides to serve as Commissioner, SA, SSA, SSG, AG etc. Aiyedatiwa’s cabinet appointment includes but not limited to: ''Special Advisers (SAs)'' Engr. Johnson Alabi, Dr. Seun Osamaye, Comrade Bola Taiwo, Prof Simidele Odimayo, and more ''Senior Special Assistants (SSAs)'' Hon. Omotayo Abidakun, Hon Akintoye Albert, Akindele Adeniyi, Oluyemi Fasipe, and more

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aiyedatiwa, Lucky 1965 births Living people People from Ondo State Politicians from Ondo State Governors of Ondo State All Progressives Congress politicians Yoruba politicians Alumni of the University of Liverpool Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education alumni Lagos Business School alumni Pan-Atlantic University alumni University of Ibadan alumni