Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu (; 21 July 1956 – 27 December 2023) was a Nigerian lawyer and politician who 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 ...

from 2017 until his death in 2023. His adopted prefix was "Arakunrin", while his nickname was "Aketi". He was a

Senior Advocate of Nigeria Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) is a honorific title that is conferred on legal practitioners in Nigeria of not less than ten years' standing and who have distinguished themselves in the legal profession. It is the equivalent of the rank of King ...

(SAN) who became president of the

Nigerian Bar Association The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) is a non-profit, umbrella professional association of lawyers admitted to the Bar by the Council of Legal Education in Nigeria. It is engaged in the promotion and protection of human rights, the rule of law and ...

in 2008. Akeredolu was also a managing partner at the law firm of Olujinmi & Akeredolu, which he co-founded with Chief Akin Olujinmi, a former attorney general and minister for justice of Nigeria. On 21 July 2020, Akeredolu was declared as the

Ondo Ondo may refer to: Places * Ondo, Hiroshima, Japan, a former town * Ondo State, Nigeria ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Ondo, Ondo State ** Ondo Town, a town in the state * Ondo Kingdom (c. 1510–1899), a state with its capital in Ode Ondo (now Ondo ...

governorship candidate after the primary elections under the platform of the APC. During his time as governor of Ondo State, he also doubled as the chairman of Southwest Governors' Forum, a forum consisting of governors of the Southwest Nigerian states.

Birth and education

Akeredolu was born on 21 July 1956 in Owo to Reverend J. Ola Akeredolu of the Akeredolu family and Lady Evangelist Grace B. Akeredolu of Aderoyiju family of Igbotu,

Ese Odo Ese Odo is a Local Government Area in Ondo State, Nigeria, populated by the Ijaw (Izon) ethnic sub groups of the Western Apoi tribe and the Arogbo tribe. Its headquarters are in the town of Igbekebo and its one of the LGA with crude oil in Ond ...

, in

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 ...

. Akeredolu started his primary education at Government Primary School in Owo. He proceeded to Aquinas College in

Akure Akure is a city in south-western Nigeria. It is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Ondo State. The city had a population of 403,000 as of the 2006 population census. Its current population is estimated at 774,000.Loyola College in Ibadan and Comprehensive High School, Ayetoro, for his secondary school education and Higher School Certificate, respectively. His middle name ''Odunayo'' means "Year of happiness" in Yoruba. He went on to the

University of Ife Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) is a federal university in Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria. The university was founded in 1961 and classes commenced in October 1962 as the University of Ife by the regional government of Western Nigeria, which w ...

(now

Obafemi Awolowo University Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) is a federal university in Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria. The university was founded in 1961 and classes commenced in October 1962 as the University of Ife by the regional government of Western Nigeria, which w ...

) to study Law and he graduated in 1977. He was referred to the

Nigerian Law School The Nigerian Law School is an educational institution set up to provide professional certification to graduates of law. The school was established in Lagos under the Legal Education Act 1962, now Legal Education (Consolidation Etc) Act Cap. L1 ...

in 1978.

Career

Akeredolu began his legal career as a junior counsel with the law firm, GM Ibru & Co. He was appointed

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

from 1997 to 1999. In 1998, he became a

. He was Chairman of the Legal Aid Council (2005–2006). 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 A petition is a request to do something, most commonly addressed to a government official or public entity. Petitions to a deity are a form of prayer called supplication. In the colloquial sense, a petition is a document addressed to an officia ...

entitled "Complaints against your fraudulent manifestations, violation of the NBA". Subsequently, the

allegation In law, an allegation is a claim of an unproven fact by a party in a pleading, charge, or defense. Until they can be proved, allegations remain merely assertions. Types of allegations Marital allegations There are also marital allegations: m ...

s against him were reviewed and dropped by the National Executive council of the

. In a lecture in December 2009, Akeredolu said no amount of

electoral reform Electoral reform is a change in electoral systems that alters how public desires, usually expressed by cast votes, produce election results. Description Reforms can include changes to: * Voting systems, such as adoption of proportional represen ...

or judicial system could give Nigeria free and fair elections if Nigerians themselves refused to take practical steps to ensure that their votes count. Later that month he stated that

Umaru Yar'Adua Umaru Musa Yar'Adua (; 16 August 19515 May 2010) was a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2007 until his death in May 2010. He won the Nigerian presidential election held on 21 April 2007, and was sworn in on 29 Ma ...

, the President of Nigeria should have handed over to Vice-President

Goodluck Jonathan Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan (born 20 November 1957) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015. He lost the 2015 presidential election to former military head of state General Muhammadu Buhari and ...

in an acting capacity during his

illness A disease is a particular abnormal condition that adversely affects the structure or function (biology), function of all or part of an organism and is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical condi ...

, a statement that was backed up by the

who said he was authorized to speak on their behalf. In 2012, the

named its new secretariat in

Abuja Abuja (; , ) is the capital city of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, strategically situated at the geographic midpoint of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), Federal Capital Territory (FCT). As the seat of the Federal G ...

after Akeredolu, its president citing the need for "generational identification and recognition of those who had contributed immensely to the development of the association. The sheer courage for him to go through the rigour is a testimony to his selfless service." On 4 February 2022, Akeredolu was named Grand Patron of the

National Drug Law Enforcement Agency The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) is a federal law enforcement agency in Nigeria under the Federal Ministry of Justice charged with eliminating the growing, processing, manufacturing, selling, exporting, and trafficking of hard d ...

by its chairman, retired Brigadier General Mohammed Buba Marwa.

Governorship candidate, 2011

In November 2011, Akeredolu was among a crowd of aspirants to be 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) candidate for governor of Ondo State in the 2012 elections. During an interview that month, Akeredolu said that he had become well known and respected as president of the Bar, and described himself as a Progressive. If elected, his priorities would include agricultural development, fish farming for export, improvements to education, jobs for youths and improved roads. He would provide free education and primary health care. He was in favour of increased subsidies and greater local control over public spending. On 28 July 2012, Akeredolu was selected as the Action Congress of Nigeria candidate for governor of

during the ACN congress in Akure. His selection pitched him in a head-to-head battle with the incumbent,

Olusegun Mimiko Olusegun Rahman Mimiko ( ; born 3 October 1954), is a Nigerian medical doctor and politician who served as governor of Ondo State from 2009 to 2017. He was the senatorial candidate of the Zenith Labour Party for Ondo State, Ondo Central District ...

and Olusola Oke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Akeredolu promised to create 30,000 jobs in his first 100 days in office. His promise was refuted by the (PDP) as a ruse. On 3 September 2016, Akeredolu was awarded the ticket to represent the newly merged

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) in the 2016 elections for Governor. On 27 November 2016, he was declared winner of the keenly contested 2016 Ondo State gubernatorial election.

Governor of Ondo State

On 27 November 2016, Akeredolu was 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 ...

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

Re-election, 2020

In 2020, the Aketi Movement gathered the support of over 100 groups with 200,000 members across the three senatorial districts of Ondo State for the re-election of Akeredolu as the state governor. On 29 July 2020, Akeredolu picked Lucky Aiyedatiwa as his

running mate A running mate is a person running together with another person on a joint ticket during an election. The term is most often used in reference to the person in the subordinate position (such as the vice presidential candidate running with a pre ...

for the 2020 Ondo State Governorship election after the controversy between the Governor and his deputy,

Agboola Ajayi Alfred Agboola Ajayi (born 24 September 1968) is a Nigerian politician, lawyer, and businessman who served as deputy governor of Ondo State from 2017 to 2021. On 21 June 2020, Ajayi resigned his membership from the ruling party All Progressive ...

. He beat Olusola Oke, D.I. Kekemeke, Jimi Odimayo, Segun Abraham and others in the APC primary election. Akeredolu was declared winner of the 2020 Ondo Governorship election on 11 October 2020, after winning 15 out of 18 local governments. The

announced his victory on the same day. He won with a total number of 292,830 valid votes against his major opponents from the Peoples Democratic Party and the Zenith Labour Party, Eyitayo Jegede and

respectively. Akeredolu was sworn in for a second term in office on 24 February 2021. He and his new deputy, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, assumed office on the same date and he was the incumbent deputy governor of Ondo State. Akeredolu advocated for the payment of taxes in the state to help boost the economy of the state and fulfilments of obligations. He decamped to PDP (Peoples Democratic Party) following party disputes. In June 2022, Akeredolu called the

Owo church attack On 5 June 2022, a mass shooting and bomb attack occurred at a Catholic church in the city of Owo in Ondo State, Nigeria. At least 40 people were killed, with the highest estimates being around 80. Some in the federal government of Nigeria suspe ...

against

Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

in Ondo "satanic". Akeredolu was latterly starting up a sea port project in Ondo state and stated that his administration was committed to the completion of the project, which was initiated in his first term, saying the port would not only serve Nigeria but also the whole of West Africa once built.

Illness and death

Akeredolu was undergoing treatment for leukaemia from January 2023, and had a long period of medical absence. On 12 December 2023, in advance of another period of medical leave, Akeredolu signed the notice appointing deputy governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, as acting governor of the state. Akeredolu died 15 days later on 27 December, at age 67 in a German hospital where he was receiving treatment, with his cause of death being given as leukaemia and prostate cancer.

National honours

In October 2022, a Nigerian national honour of

Commander of the Order of the Niger Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries, ...

(CON) was conferred on Akeredolu by President

Muhammadu Buhari Muhammadu Buhari (born 17 December 1942) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2015 to 2023. A retired Nigerian army major general, he was the military head of state of Nigeria from 31 December 1983 to 27 Augu ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Akeredolu, Rotimi 1956 births 2023 deaths People from Owo 20th-century Nigerian lawyers Senior advocates of Nigeria Obafemi Awolowo University alumni Yoruba lawyers Loyola College, Ibadan alumni Politicians from Ondo State Governors of Ondo State All Progressives Congress politicians Yoruba politicians 21st-century Nigerian lawyers People from Ondo State Commanders of the Order of the Niger Deaths from leukemia in Germany Deaths from prostate cancer